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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, 



Chap. Copyright No._ 

. Shell 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES 



/BY 

/ 
G. W. HOENSHEL 

FOUNDER OF 
THE SHENANDOAH NORMAL COLLEGE 



1900 
PUBLISHED BY 

MRS. G. W. HOENSHEL 

NEW MARKET, VA. 



.1 



TWO COPIES RECE1VBUD, 

Library of Cangr«i% 
Office of tilt 

MAY 2 11900 

KegUttr of Copyright* 

£fo . 26] /foe 

8EC0N0 COP*. 

1ST 157/ 

Ms? 

58670 

COPYRIGHT 1900 
BY 

MRS. G. W. HOENSHEL 



TO THE ALUMNI OF 
THE SHENANDOAH NORMAL COLLEGE 

THIS BOOK IS 

DEDICATED 

BY THE AUTHOR 



CONTENTS 



"X-TALKS." 

PAGE 

The Choice of Friends 21 

Mastering Difficulties 23 

Choosing a Profession 26 

Self-Confldence 29 

Lack of Ambition 33 

The Use of Language 36 

Sowing Wild Oats 39 

Just for Fun 43 

Importance of Character 47 

School Friendships 51 

The Use of Books 54 

The Use of Money 57 

School Rivalry 63 

Respect for Authority 66 

Importance of Health 69 

Cheerfulness J3 

The Waiting Time y6 

A Talk to Girls 79 

The Rewards of the Student 82 

5 



CONTENTS 



OTHER ADDRESSES. 



PAGE 

Why We Should Be Thankful 86 

On the Burial of Moses 90 



CLASS ADDRESSES. 

Class of '84 in 

Class of '85 115 

Class of '86 120 

Class of '87 122 

Class of '88 126 

Class of '89 129 

Class of '90 133 

Class of '91 134 

Class of '92 ... 136 

Class of '93 138 

Class of '94 141 

Class of '95 143 

Class of '96 145 



INTRODUCTION. 



If by reading these "Talks" your burden grows 

lighter, 
Your hope in the future is stronger or brighter; 
If they shall inspire but one noble deed, 
Or help you to live for Christ and His creed; 
If strength for life's duties, or courage, you gain ; 
Then we shall know that his hope was not vain. 
Although imperfections you surely can find, 
Just sift them all out and leave them behind. 
And the hope is still cherished that by more than 

half, 
The good will outw r eigh what seems only chaff. 
Then, whatever the fate this volume shall meet, 
If it strengthens the right its mission's complete. 
If you take up these 'Talks," as critics will do, 
To bring imperfections alone to the view, 
You will find them ; but trusting that no worthy 

line 
Will be as a pearl that is cast before swine, 
This volume is sent on its mission of love. 
May it be to each youth as -Noah's white dove, 
Bringing hope to each one who resolves to be 

true; 
Whatever the work his hands find to do. 

—Mrs. G. W. Hoenshel. 
7 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. 



George Washington Hoenshel was born at 
Mendon, Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, 
December n, 1858. His early education was 
obtained in the public schools of that State, in 
which he afterwards taught for several years. 

After graduating from the Normal School at 
Danville, Indiana, he immediately began the for- 
mation of plans for the organization of a similar 
school in Virginia. The strong opposition which 
at that time existed throughout the South to the 
principles of Normalism and coeducation made 
this a bold step. But it was with no weak and 
faltering purpose that the task was undertaken. 

The place chosen for the experiment was Mid- 
dletown, a historic spot, located on the Valley 
Pike, about twelve miles from Winchester. 
Here, in the fall of 1883, was organized the 
Shenandoah Normal College. But it was only a 
few years till this child of genius had outgrown 
its swaddling clothes; and finding it impossible 
to secure suitable accommodations here, the 
school was moved to Harrisonburg, in Rocking- 
ham county. Here, in 1887, the school opened 
with a good enrollment. The rooms which had 
been secured here were far more commodious, 
yet poorly adapted for school purposes. 

9 \i 



IO BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. 

The school continued to grow; but still there 
was felt the need of more suitable buildings. It 
was Mr. Hoenshers growing ambition to secure 
for the Normal a permanent home with all needed 
appliances and conveniences, adapted to the 
needs and requirements of the work. This led 
him, in 1890, to accept the offer of the Basic 
City Mining, Manufacturing and Land Com- 
pany, and to move the school to that place, where 
suitable buildings were erected and given free of 
rent for a period of ten years. 

The long cherished hope seemed at last lo 
have been realized. But the triumph was of short 
duration. The third year at this place, and the 
tenth in the history of the school, had opened 
with encouraging prospects. All hearts were full 
of hope. But on the night of November 16, 1892, 
the cry of fire! fire! rang out from the halls 
of the Shenandoah Normal College, and in a 
few minutes the beautiful building, with almost 
its entire contents, was in ashes. Courage fails 
me to relate the sad story of blighted hopes and 
fondly cherished ambitions. Let him whose 
heart never faltered tell it in his own hopeful 
words. The following account of the fire ap- 
peared in the Normal Index of December, 1892, 
under the head of "Normal Notes": 

"Since the burning of the college building on 
the night of November 16th, we have received 
letters of sympathy and encouragement from 
many friends. Time does not permit us to an- 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. II 

swer all these letters as we would like, and so we 
give this rather personal account of the fire and 
its influence upon the school. 

"The college building was a three-story frame 
structure erected especially for the Normal by 
the Basic City Mining, Manufacturing and Land 
Company in 1890. It contained thirty-three 
rooms. The lower story was used for recitation 
rooms, dining room, and kitchen. The two upper 
stories were occupied by the principal and his 
family and the students. 

"The fire occurred at ten o'clock on Wednes- 
day night. It was discovered by some of the 
students, who observed smoke in their room. At 
that time the whole attic seemed to be on fire 
and there was no hope of saving the building. 
It is possible that the fire originated near the roof 
from the kitchen flue. Nothing could be done 
but to save what property we could. Each stu- 
dent took his own trunk from the building. The 
girls acted with remarkable presence of mind. 
Some of the students lost most of their clothing 
and others nearly all their books. One of the 
girls saved everything even to an empty ink 
bottle. So much for a level head in time of dan- 
ger. The writer had retired and was awakened 
by the commotion caused by the students remov- 
ing their trunks from the building. The first 
care was for his family and then for the records 
of the school and other personal papers. A part 
of the records were saved but the library, notes. 



12 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. 

manuscripts, all were lost. We saved but little 
more than the clothes on our backs and a part of 
the family escaped almost naked. Although the 
stairway was burning, much might have been 
saved by cool management. Homes were freely 
offered the students by the citizens of the town, 
and we turned from the glowing embers to plan 
and to prepare for the work of to-morrow. The 
tall chimneys standing amid the ruins cast weird 
shadows among the surrounding trees, and by 
many were regarded as monuments of the proud- 
est work of the Normal. But we looked not to 
the past and its achievements but to the future, 
where the star of hope still shines brightly. 

"Thursday morning the work of reorganizing 
was begun. The Rosenberger building on Au- 
gusta avenue was rented, and partly furnished. 
Thursday evening there was a meeting of faculty 
and students in one of the recitation rooms of 
the new building. We talked of the past, and 
planned for the future. All were hopeful and 
signified their readiness to begin work again with 
renewed zeal. After invoking divine guidance, 
and singing "All Hail the Power of Jesus' 
Name," we adjourned. It was one of those 
strange meetings that leave lasting impressions. 

"Friday we again began work. There was a 
scarcity of books and no blackboards, but in time 
they were supplied. Owing to the difficulty and 
the disappointment in securing furniture the 
students suffered many inconveniences in the 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. 1 3 

new building, but all without complaining. We 
are now pleasantly located and school work is 
moving along as usual. None of our students 
left us on account of the fire, and others have 
since come in. The writer can not speak too 
highly of the loyal assistance of the faculty and 
the courageous spirit of the students in their 
determination to make the best of their misfor- 
tune during their days of disappointment and 
trial. 

"The citizens have been kind to us. They 
have rented the buildings we now occupy and 
supplied many of our immediate wants. Pro- 
fessor Sine, W. A. Bowles of Hotel Brandon, 
Dr. R. G. Griffith, J. H. Rankin, and H. R. 
Hicks were especially kind in furnishing homes 
to the students. The Principal and his family 
will long remember the kindness of Professor 
Sine on the night of the fire. 

"Early Thursday morning one of the ministers 
from Waynesboro came to see us. He greeted 
us with a hearty hand shake and a cheering "God 
bless you," and in his hand there was the crisp 
paper that secures comforts everywhere. He was 
prompted by no ties of friendship, but by the 
emotions of a common humanity and the pre- 
cepts of a divine religion. Help was not desired, 
and such offers of assistance were at first refused, 
but when they came in various forms and from 
different sources, we could but accept them in 
the spirit in which they were sent. We recognize 



14 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. 

an overruling power in the destruction of our 
home, and it would be unjust not to acknowledge 
a beneficent hand in these kind offers of assist- 
ance. God sometimes uses human means to 
accomplish divine ends. Financially our loss 
was not great, but it was our home, and we lost 
all. Notes and manuscripts that represented 
many weary hours of investigation and thought 
have been destroyed and can never be replaced. 
Mementoes of the past and gifts of friends in one 
night are reduced to smoke and ashes, and we 
go out homeless and almost penniless in the 
world. We still have hope and courage and take 
up anew the tangled thread of life and shall press 
forward to nobler achievements in the future. 

"It was not carelessness on our part that the 
furniture was not insured. We were insured by 
the agent, but as he assumed authority that did 
not belong to him we lose what might have been 
saved from the general ruin. 

"We have received many compliments for the 
promptness with which school work was begun 
after the fire. We claim no credit for that. We 
did no more than we would expect the majority 
of our students to do under similar circum- 
stances. And then it was no time for thought. 
It was a time for action, prompt and decisive. 
We had entered into agreements with the stu- 
dents and the faculty, and these must be made 
good, however great the individual loss. And 
then there was no way back. When the Normal 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. 1 5 

was organized in 1883 it was our aim to make 
it equal to any institution of learning in the 
South, and having put our hands to the plow we 
could not even look back. It was 'Normal grit' 
that aided in our organization of the Normal, 
and it was 'Normal grit' that helped us in this 
disaster. We are now in a condition to make 
good all of our advertisements and are already 
making arrangements for a large attendance 
when the spring term opens. We mean to fur- 
nish accommodations for all who come. From 
the ruins of our home the Normal rises like the 
Phoenix of old and will stand pre-eminent among 
the favored schools of the State. The stars and 
stripes never floated more majestically in the 
sweet winds of heaven than when our flag was 
unfurled to the breeze on Thursday morning to 
convince those who doubted that the Normal 
still lived. 

"Plans are now being matured by which we 
will secure more durable buildings and increased 
facilities for carrying on our work. We look 
not back but forward. We talk not of the past 
but of the future. The Normal rises triumphant 
from the ruins and invites those who look up 
and aspire to enroll their names among those of 
the students. If you are backward we will impart 
knowledge; if you are weak we will give 
strength; if you are indifferent we will arouse 
enthusiasm; and if you are discouraged we will 
inspire life/' 



l6 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. 

The accommodations thus secured were, of 
course, only temporary. The problem of find- 
ing a new home was now to be solved. The 
"boom" which, a few years before, had swept 
through the valley had subsided, and left busi- 
ness in a state of stagnation. Indeed, it may be 
truthfully asserted that the raid of the "boom" 
of the early 9o's was no less disastrous than that 
of Sheridan in '64. In this state of affairs the 
Land Company was unable to replace the build- 
ing which had been destroyed. The outlook was 
by no means encouraging, and a less determined 
heart would have given up in despair. 

After a careful search and thoughtful consid- 
eration, a beautiful and healthful location was 
found and selected at Reliance, Warren county, 
Va. Ample buildings were at once erected ; and 
here The Shenandoah Normal College began 
its new career in the fall of '93; and here it still 
lives and flourishes, with brighter and ever 
brightening prospects for the future. 

We have sketched thus briefly the history of 
the school, for it is inseparably connected with 
the life of its founder; and serves to emphasize, 
better than anything else could do, his indomit- 
able courage and faith in the final triumph of the 
right. 

As a teacher he was unique, and as an orator 
he was a man of peculiar power and magnetism. 
His words, as well as the spirit and enthusiasm 
with which they were uttered, carried conviction 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. 1 7 

to the heart of him who sat beneath the magic 
spell. He had that peculiar power, which un- 
fortunately so few public speakers possess, of 
imparting his own zeal and inspiration to his 
hearers. Many orators can delight an audience; 
but he sought not to please but to help. In doing 
that he did both. Whether one sat beneath the 
matchless power of his oratory or received in- 
struction from him in the class room, he could 
not deny the influence and power of his person- 
ality. 

As a man of business he was prompt and de- 
cisive. He did not believe in wasting words. He 
always knew what he wanted to say, and said 
it; he quickly decided what he wished to do, and 
did it without taking counsel of any one. This 
led him to make mistakes which at times brought 
down upon him harsh, unrelenting criticism. 
But this very quality was the strongest element 
of his genius. Without it his biography would 
not have been worth writing. As for the criti- 
cism, he cared not for that so long as his cher- 
ished ideal was being attained; that of helping 
young men and women to a higher and better 
life. 

As a worker he was untiring. He never knew 
what it was to have an idle moment. His favor- 
ite motto was: "Better to wear out than to rust 
out." But in avoiding that danger he sometimes 
went fatally near to the opposite extreme, for- 
getting that it is also possible to tear out. His 



1 8 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. 

zeal too frequently led him to over exertion; the 
consequences of which are always fatal. Besides 
teaching seven hours a day, he personally trans- 
acted all the business of the school, managing 
the boarding hall, editing The Normal Index 
and Teachers' Gazette, delivering frequent lec- 
tures, and carrying a heavy correspondence. His 
mail he frequently carried in his pocket all day 
before finding time to read it. When going out 
to lecture, or on any business connected with 
the school, he deliberately chose a night train, 
whenever possible, in order to save time. Even 
then he did not waste a moment, but carried with 
him some book to read, or a bunch of examina- 
tion papers to look over and grade. 

Thus were spent the active years of this heroic 
life, until the hand of that dread disease, con- 
sumption, was laid upon him, and he was com- 
pelled to lay down his self-chosen task. For 
several years he was unable to do full work, but 
it was only a few months before his death that 
he gave up class room work entirely and placed 
most of the business of the school in other hands. 
He continued, however, to write letters and 
"talks" almost to the end. This he did while 
lying in bed. His last letter to a prospective 
student was written on April n, 1896; and on 
Sunday, April 12, death claimed his victim, and 
the scepter fell from those hands which had 
wielded it so nobly, to be caught up and wielded 
by younger hands in accordance with his fondly 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. 19 

cherished hope. The student who received that 
last letter arrived on Monday, in time to see its 
writer laid aw r ay to rest 'in the little church yard 
across the road, in sight of the institution which 
his hands had reared, and which yet forms the 
proudest monument of his life. 

A devoted w T ife and three bright and loving 
children survive him. Miss Carrie D. Moffett, 
whom he married on the second of July, 1885, 
was herself a student of the Normal, and a mem- 
ber of the Teachers' Class of that year. After 
receiving from his hands the certificate of her 
graduation she gave her hand to him in mar- 
riage; and before that astonished audience, tak- 
ing the vows which made them one, they started 
out together upon the untried future — that future 
which, to use his own favorite expression, was to 
be so strangely mingled with joy and sorrow, 
success and failure. In his help-meet he found a 
truly noble and loving companion; a zealous 
sharer of all his labors and hopes, a true sym- 
pathizer in all his misfortunes and troubles, and 
a devoted attendant in his affliction. At his 
death the burden of the school fell upon her 
shoulders for the remainder of the year, when it 
was reorganized under a different management. 
This burden she patiently and faithfully bore, 
for it was a labor of love. Her address before 
the thirteenth graduating class is appended to 
this volume at the earnest solicitation of the 
writer of this sketch. 



20 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. 

We earnestly commend the life and example 
of G. W. Hoenshel to every aspiring young man 
and woman. It is the earnest hope of those who 
are sending out this little volume that all who 
knew him, and those who did not, may read the 
inspiring story of his life, and especially his own 
helpful words in the following pages, and receive 
new courage and inspiration. 

M. L. FEARNOW. 



"X-TALKS." 

i. 

THE CHOICE OF FRIENDS. 

The old adage that "birds of a feather flock 
together" is true. A person is known by the 
company he keeps. The evil and the good form 
no intimate associations. Virtue and vice have 
no dealings with each other. A company of 
young persons will all become evil or all good. 
The only way to avoid the influence of evil asso- 
ciates is to keep away from them. Xo one can 
have evil companions without becoming like 
them. 

I want no better test of a young man's char- 
acter than to know his associates. When a 
student enters school he can select his own 
friends. If he goes with those who always do 
good work and respect authority we know he is 
all right, but if he selects his friends from those 
who neglect their lessons and delight to loaf 
around the stores with the men of the baser 
sort in the neighborhood, we know that he needs 
to be watched. A student always determines his 
own standing in school by his own conduct. He 
can stand among the best or stand with the low r - 



22 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

est. As it is in school so is it elsewhere. A 
person's standing in the community is deter- 
mined by his associates. When going into a 
strange place to teach or for any other purpose 
you cannot be too careful. The people will re- 
ceive you kindly, and by your associates you 
will either gain or lose their respect. Don't be in 
a hurry in selecting your friends. Treat all 
kindly, be courteous always, be slow in forming 
friendships. If circumstances should place you 
among evil associates, avoid them, come out from 
them. Your character is of too much importance 
to be imperiled by coming in daily contact with 
persons of corrupt minds and morals. 

In selecting your friends consider well their 
habits. Avoid those who use tobacco in any 
form. If you do not smoke it is not pleasant lo 
be in company with a number of young persons 
who do smoke. If any of you now use tobacco, 
stop it. It does you no good; it is expensive, 
and it is disagreeable to many persons. 

Do not select your friends from those who 
enter saloons or gambling halls. Your friends 
must not go where you cannot enter. Avoid 
those who use profane or obscene language. Go 
not with those who never attend church and who 
laugh at things sacred. Have no friendship with 
those who spend more than they earn, and prom- 
ise more than they can do. .. Keep away from 
those who, in their dealings with others, disre- 
gard the principles of strict integrity. The vain, 



MASTERING DIFFICULTIES. 23 

the foolish, and the careless can do you no good. 
Select not your friends from among them. 

Choose your friends from those who live as 
you do, think as you do, and have somewhat the 
same ideas of life as you have. Congeniality of 
disposition always makes fast friends. It is not 
necessary that friends should always agree. In 
fact it is well some times that they should have 
different views upon many subjects. It is im- 
portant that they should be candid and sincere; 
more desirous for truth than contention. When 
two persons earnestly seek for truth, they can- 
not be far apart. 

But if you would have friends you must be 
true to your friends. You must be worthy of 
friendship, and endeavor to be a help and an 
inspiration to all. "The friends you have tried 
and their adoption proved, bind to thyself with 
hooks of steel/' 

II. 

MASTERING DIFFICULTIES. 

The great object of a student's life is to learn 
to master difficulties. It is not intended that 
school work should be easy. Were the teachers 
to solve all the difficult problems it would do 
you no good — you would obtain no strength. 
School life is a time for labor and not for pleas- 
ure. Were it possible for me to remove the 
difficulties from your way, I would not do so. 



24 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

I delight in giving you hard lessons. I like to 
see you do your best. I would rather you would 
fail in recitation after faithful study, than de- 
pend upon some other person to do the work for 
you. We obtain strength only by doing that 
which requires exertion. To do only that which 
is easy tends to weaken us. 

I am aware that you are inclined to think that 
the work is sometimes too difficult. That may be 
so. It may not be possible for you to master 
all the difficulties that come up in school work, 
but you can always do your best. To try earn- 
estly, even though you do not succeed, will make 
you stronger. It is not expected that you can 
master all things. What I would especially urge 
upon you is to form the habit of mastering as you 
go. One lesson well learned will make the next 
one easier, while a neglected lesson will render 
others more difficult. If you leave difficulties be- 
hind you, you cannot tell when they may cause 
you trouble; for they will be sure to overtake you 
sometime. The wise general leaves no enemy 
behind him when he invades a country. 

You know not what you can accomplish until 
you try. Many things that now seem impossible 
to you will seem easy when you put forth the 
proper effort. Each day has its own duty, and 
doing well the work before you will enable you 
to master all difficulties. The danger is in the 
first neglect of duty. Form the habit of always 
doing your best. Review each day's work, but 



MASTERING DIFFICULTIES. 25 

do not worry over the result. This is a time of 
preparation for life's work. How well you pre- 
pare for each day's duty will determine how w T ell 
you will succeed in your chosen work. Every 
difficult problem solved, or sentence translated, 
will make you stronger. 

Many persons do not know how to study. A 
student once remarked to me that he had read 
his lessons over six times and did not know them. 
What a waste of time and energy! He did not 
study. He might read a lesson over twenty 
times in the same manner and still not know any- 
thing about it. Too often a student attempts to 
prepare a lesson and think about something else 
at the same time. A few minutes of hard study 
will accomplish more than hours of careless read- 
ing. Concentration is the secret of intellectual 
strength. Devote all your energies to the les- 
sons before you. Think about nothing else. One 
careful reading and study of a lesson ought to 
enable you to master all the important points. 
Do not attempt to study any lesson when you 
are thinking of something else. It is simply 
a w r aste of time. Form the habit of controlling 
your mind. Do not build air castles when you 
ought to be studying. Bring all your faculties 
to bear upon the subject before you, and many 
of the difficulties will soon disappear. It is pos- 
sible to take a piece of ice and so concentrate 
the rays of the sun as to cause fire. So the ener- 
gies of the mind may be concentrated until the 



26 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

impossible is almost accomplished. Master your- 
self. Do not be discouraged until you are sure 
you have done your best. 

Hard study is the way to make a lesson easy. 
Do not deceive yourselves by using keys and 
translations. Strength comes only from undi- 
vided exertion. If, while in school, you form the 
habit of relying upon others, it will be an element 
of weakness to you at the. time when it is most 
important for you to be strong. The only way 
to overcome difficulties is to master them. When 
the king brought his son to the Grecian phil- 
osopher to have him taught geometry, and asked 
that the work might be made easier for him than 
for others, because he was of noble birth, the 
philosopher replied, that there is no royal road 
to geometry, that those who would acquire the 
knowledge must put forth the effort. If you 
would enjoy the pleasures of a student's life, 
conquer self. Yield not to difficulties, and do 
well the work of each day. 

III. 

CHOOSING A PROFESSION. 

Every person can do some one thing well. 
Failure is not always an indication of weakness. 
It is frequently the result of engaging in the 
wrong work. Those who fail at one thing might 
succeed at something else. Success in life de- 



CHOOSING A PROFESSION. 27 

pends to a very great extent upon the correct 
choice of a profession. It is not always easy 
for a young person to choose a profession, and 
yet it is important that a choice should be made 
early in life. Each one of you should labor for 
some special purpose. If you have not selected 
your life's work, let me urge you to do so now. 
It will give you strength and make success more 
certain. Many young persons waste the best 
years of life by simply drifting. 

As a rule, you will succeed best at the work 
you like to do. Before selecting a profession 
study yourself well. You should know wherein 
you are weak and in w T hat you are strong. Then 
consider well the requirements of the various 
professions, and you will not likely make a mis- 
take. I do not regard one work more honorable 
than another. The honor is not in the profes- 
sion, but in the man. There is something en- 
nobling in doing any work well. It is far better 
for you to succeed in the most humble vocation 
than to fail in an honorable profession. 

There are no soft places in life. There is no 
royal road to success in any profession. Those 
who have good positions and large salaries are 
the men who work. To-day every profession is 
crowded. There are teachers who have no posi- 
tions, ministers who receive no call, lawyers who 
have no clients, and physicians who have no 
patients. Don't make a mistake. You can rise 
only by hard work. Unless you can stand among 



28 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

the first, it would not be wise for you to enter a 
profession. You know your strength and the 
difficulties in the way. Determine to rise or 
enter not at all. You will find room only at the 
top. If you make no mistake you will succeed. 
Look not back, but go forward. 

There is a demand for men in all the various 
professions of life — strong men — men who can 
take the lead and mark out the course of the 
world's progress. There is a demand for good 
ministers, wise lawyers, and successful physi- 
cians. There is a wide field of usefulness to the 
young man who has the strength to go forward 
and overcome the obstacles in the way. The 
world is ready to receive its master. Within the 
past few years wonderful discoveries have been 
made in the science of medicine, and yet greater 
developments and improvements in the treatment 
of disease will yet be made. In all professions 
there is room for improvement. To him who 
takes the lead will be granted the honor of a 
successful career. 

Not every one can succeed in a profession. 
Many a good farmer is spoiled to make a poor 
preacher. There is no honor in being a second- 
class anything. If you have not the require- 
ments to succeed in a profession, engage in some 
vocation. Do your work well; fill your place in 
the world full. Honest effort on your part will 
make any work ennobling. In whatever work 
you engage do your best. 



SELF-CONFIDENCE. 29 

In many vocations there is a demand for lead- 
ers. This is especially true in mechanical occu- 
pations. The young man who is familiar with 
electrical science is sure of a position at good 
wages. There is an opportunity, also, for the 
young man who desires to enter upon a business 
career. A vocation is no more exacting than a 
profession, while in many cases the pay is much 
greater. Work well done will always bring its 
reward. 

While I would advise you to select early your 
work in life, don't be in a hurry to engage in a 
profession. It pays to prepare well for any work. 
If you are ready to begin well between twenty- 
five and thirty years of age, the time devoted to 
preparation has been well spent. The competi- 
tion is great, and you will have need of all your 
energy. Many persons fail because they lack 
preparation. In their haste they lose all. They 
are weak when they might be strong. Choose 
your profession wisely, secure thorough prepara- 
tion, strive earnestly to lead and you need give 
yourself no concern as to the result. 

IV. 

SELF-CONFIDENCE. 

Confidence in one's ability to do is half the 
battle. The world usually takes a man at the 
value he sets upon himself. A faint-hearted per- 
son seldom wins the prize. Confidence gives 



30 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

strength. He who believes he will succeed will 
strive with energy, while he who has no hope 
of winning will not put forth his best efforts. 

Knowledge gives confidence, and confidence 
gives power. In school work we have endeav- 
ored to impress upon your minds the importance 
of not only knowing a lesson, but knowing that 
you know. Nothing will give you more con- 
fidence in yourself than to master a subject thor- 
oughly. Egoism is not confidence. A boastful 
spirit does not impart courage nor strength. 
Some persons undertake great things, but they 
fail. Their knowledge is imperfect, and what 
confidence they have is a source of weakness, 
because it leads them to undertake the impossi- 
ble. In these years of preparation build sure 
and strong. Let your confidence be founded 
upon knowledge. Knowledge leads to truth, and 
truth is light and power. Not to be certain that 
you know a thing will destroy your confidence 
and weaken your ability. You can have confi- 
dence only in what you know to be true. 

It is well for a young person to have a good 
opinion of himself, and great confidence in his 
ability to do. The only time that some of us 
have no rivals is when we fall in love with our- 
selves. If your confidence is well founded it 
can do you no harm. It is not hard to distin- 
guish it from egoism. Egoism is noisy, confi- 
dence is quiet. Egoism is boastful, confidence 
is modest. A young person starting out in life 



SELF-CONFIDENCE. 3 1 

ought to have a fair knowledge of what he can 
do. The object of an education is to give a man 
control of the powers and abilities which he 
possesses. Consider well, then, your own knowl- 
edge and strength — determine in what you are 
weak and in what strong. Then look carefully 
at the work before you. Consider the difficul- 
ties in the way, and if you feel that you can 
master the situation, take hold of it with un- 
bounded confidence in your ability, and in the 
assurance of final triumph. When you take hold 
of work in that manner you cannot fail. See 
what is before you and do not waste your time 
and energy 7 in striving to accomplish the im- 
possible. 

If you have done faithful work in school you 
can teach some subjects that you have not 
studied. Have confidence in your ability, and 
back up your confidence by earnest work. Con- 
fidence without work is only bombast and will 
cause trouble. Many persons fail because they 
do not consider the difficulties in the way. No 
one can do all things. Men of great ability fail 
at some things. He who has no ear for music 
should not attempt to become a leader of an 
orchestra. Failure is more often an indication of 
a mistake than of weakness. There can be no 
real confidence unless you know something of 
the work to be done. When you know this, then 
go forward, and think only of success. Failure 
is impossible to heroic souls. Poverty has no 



32 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

chains to bind to earth, and fate no power to 
daunt the courageous spirit of him who has con- 
fidence in himself, and is willing to work. He 
holds the key that unlocks the gateway of knowl- 
edge, and opens up avenues to success. Many 
persons place much virtue in trying. They put 
forth a faint-hearted effort, fail and sit down with 
a satisfied air, saying, "I tried, angels can do no 
more/' That is a mistake. Only those who do 
their very best can claim the reward of the* 
angels. There is no virtue in simply trying. 

A man might devote all his energies to an 
attempt to reach the moon, but what good would 
come of it? The destinies of nations is shaped, 
and the course of the world's progress marked 
out by men who succeed, not by those who sim- 
ply try. You are expected to undertake what 
you can do, and then succeed. Trying will not 
satisfy the demands of the present. The record 
of the world's history is made up of the achieve- 
ments of those who do. Engage in no work in 
which you do not believe you can succeed. 
When you once begin, falter not, fail not. Let 
your confidence be based upon knowledge, and 
it will give you courage and strength that will 
make failure impossible. Simply to try is to fail. 

However fortunate you have been in the past, 
do not depend upon luck. No confidence, no 
ability, no knowledge, can take the place of 
genuine, earnest work. What you would do you 
can do. "Our lives are in our hands to shape 



LACK OF AMBITION. 33 

them as we will." By our own exertions we carve 
out our destinies, and by untiring energy pluck 
bright success from the hands of fate. 

V. 

LACK OF AMBITION. 

Many persons object to popular education be- 
cause an education makes a person dissatisfied 
with his condition in life. It was never intended 
that man should be satisfied with present attain- 
ments. It is this striving after greater things that 
distinguishes man from the lower animals. Too 
many young persons are satisfied with their pres- 
ent condition in life. They do not realize the 
possibilities that lie before them, how much 
brighter the sun shines just across the mountain. 
They lack ambition and inspiration, and as a re- 
sult they accomplish but little in the world. 

Not all can be great, and I would not have any 
one strive after the impossible, but all can im- 
prove, and every one should have at least a 
spark of that celestial fire — ambition — in his 
breast. No man dare place a limit to human at- 
tainments. No one dare say that the most ex- 
alted ambition of a young man is an illusion. 
Let the young man who feels within himself the 
possibility of accomplishing greater things go 
forward with his eyes fixed on the stars. He may 
fail, but his life will be better because he dreamed 



34 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

dreams, and his youth saw visions of brighter 
things. 

All persons are not ambitious. Some are of 
the earth earthy. They are content to live and 
die where they are without any concern of what 
they might be. You have doubtless heard the 
story of the cat that, having lost one of her kit- 
tens, went to the woods and brought back a 
young hare and adopted it as a member of her 
own family. It grew and was contented, but the 
cat could not teach it to catch mice. In spite 
of being boxed on the ears many times, the 
young hare was no mouser, and regardless of 
the disgust and punishment of the foster-mother, 
it would eat grass. So it is with people. There 
is no power to create talent or ability, and some 
persons will eat grass. They will never become 
mousers under any system of training. Do not 
try to change your nature nor try to excel in 
a work for which you have no talent. 

Ambition is an evil only when the accomplish- 
ment of some special purpose becomes a con- 
trolling influence of life, and no regard is paid 
to the means used. It is the inordinate ambition 
that pays no attention to right or wrong that has 
filled the world with suffering and the pages of 
the world's history with the record of rapine and 
war, with all their attendant evils. No ambition, 
however worthy, can justify crime. When a man 
gives himself up to the accomplishment of a 
single purpose and makes that the one end of 



LACK OF AMBITION. 35 

his life, he fails to live as he should live, and 
nothing can atone for the mistake he makes. 
Forget not that your first duty is to be a man in 
the truest sense of the word. Do nothing not in 
accordance with the principles of right; and then 
no worthy ambition can injure you. Care not 
if others laugh at your ambition. Strive to ac- 
complish something worthy of your ability, and 
your life will be made the fuller, grander and 
nobler thereby; however far you may fall short 
of the dreams of your youth. Make not the fatal 
mistake that worthy ambition will bring you suc- 
cess. However exalted may be your aim, noth- 
ing can do away with daily drudgery and constant 
work. To-day and every day you must put forth 
your best efforts to realize what you desire to 
accomplish. The time for dreaming has past. 
Begin now and make every day count. Nothing 
worth having will come to you by chance. 

"The heights by great men reached and kept 
Were not attained by sudden flight; 

But they, while their companions slept, 
Were toiling upward in the night." 

Whatever, then, may be your lot in life, be 
ambitious. Live not for self alone, but for the 
good you may do. Strive not for that which is 
low, but for that which will exalt and ennoble 
humanity. Let the means used be honest, and 
you need not think of the end. Be not content 



36 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

with any achievement until life and its cares are 
ended, and you hear the summons, "Come up 
higher." 

VI. 

THE USE OF LANGUAGE. 

Correct speech is more a matter of habit than 
of knowledge. Many persons who are familiar 
with the principles of language violate the laws 
of established usage every day. The language 
a man uses tells how he thinks, and the manner 
in which he thinks determines what he is. Speech 
is a better indication of culture and refinement 
than dress. It is much easier to dress well than 
to talk well. Imperfection in speech will betray 
a person in unguarded moments. It is only by 
constant practice that correct speech can become 
a habit. 

It is no easy matter to talk well and to correct 
imperfections in speech. Read only the best of 
books, and observe carefully the language. 
Compare your speech with that of educated per- 
sons whom you meet. Be on your guard not 
to use expressions which you know to be incor- 
rect or inelegant. Many expressions that are 
grammatical should never be used in good so- 
ciety. Whatever is coarse or low should be 
avoided. Let your language be pure and clean. 
Forms of expression used in childhood will cling 
to you for years. If you have had low associates 
your language will betray you. 



THE USE OF LANGUAGE. 37 

The use of slang has become quite common. 
Many of the expressions are of low and vulgar 
origin, while other words usually classed as slang 
are in good usage. Be careful of its use. It is 
unnecessary and indicates carelessness in 
thought and speech. Many of the words are 
used only by the low and vulgar. They originate 
in the slums of the city. There are enough words 
in the English language to express all ordinary 
thoughts without using expressions of doubtful 
propriety. As your character is determined by 
your speech, you should avoid all expressions 
that indicate low associates. 

It ought not to be necessary to speak in re- 
gard to profane language, but its use is quite 
common among the young people in some sec- 
tions of the country. Even students have been 
occasionally heard to swear. No one has ever 
yet been able to give a good excuse for swearing. 
It means nothing; it is unnecessary. If any of 
you are in the habit of using profane language, 
stop it. It is an evil, a sinful habit. Let every 
word you use mean something, and be an orna- 
ment to your speech. 

He who offends not in speech is a perfect man. 
When young people get together there is great 
danger of their using objectionable language. 
The vulgar story is told and laughed over, and 
the obscene joke is unrebuked. Those who do 
not tell the jokes encourage their rehearsal by 
their presence. Have nothing to do with such 



38 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

proceedings. As a rule what cannot be repeated 
in the parlor in the presence of ladies should not 
be told in the privacy of your own rooms. Evil 
thoughts lead to evil deeds. Let not your minds 
be contaminated with that which leads to vul- 
garity. Let no words fall from your lips that 
would bring a blush- of shame to the cheeks of 
modesty and purity. Evil thoughts will drive out 
good thoughts, and if you will use good language 
always, you must think only the best of thoughts. 
"Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth 
speaketh. ,, 

Inspect every word that you use. See that 
it is pure, and use it correctly. Aim not to talk 
much, but to talk well. Let everything you say 
be worth hearing. Think much and talk little. 
Seek the society of the refined and cultivated. 
Let not your speech betray anything that is low 
and mean in your' character. Strive each day to 
improve. When your language is pure and ele- 
gant you are prepared to enter any society. 
Read much, think much, so that your mind may 
be filled with worthy thoughts, that you may be 
able to talk intelligently upon many subjects, 
and your society will be sought by the refined 
and cultivated. "Finally, keep your heart with 
all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life." 
Keep your heart pure, and then your thought 
will be pure, your language will be pure, your 
deeds will be noble, and your life a blessing to 
yourself and others. 



SOWING WILD OATS. 39 

VII. 

SOWING WILD OATS. 

There is a widespread opinion among well- 
meaning people that a young person should 
spend several years of his life in having a good 
time, in seeing the world — or in other words, 
"sowing wild oats." And strange as it may seem, 
it is believed that after these years of dissipation 
the young person will settle down and be the 
better man or woman for the evil in which he has 
indulged. It is a universal law of nature that as 
a man sows so shall he reap. No man can sow 
vice and expect to reap the fruits of virtue. He 
who sows wild oats will find nowhere but only 
tares. No one can indulge in evil without paying 
both the physical and moral penalty, while a life 
of virtue always brings its own reward. 

I would not deprive you of a single legitimate 
pleasure. Take the world as you will, and you 
will find enough of care and pain and suffering 
and heart-ache. Look on the bright side and 
make the most of all the enjoyments and pleas- 
ures of life, "but know this, that for all these 
things God will bring thee into judgment." I 
can find nowhere a moral code for young men 
and another for elder persons. All must shape 
their characters by the same principles of right 
and wrong. Youth can never be an excuse for 



40 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

vice. Right is eternal, and he who sins must 
suffer. 

If there was no time for reaping there might 
be some pleasure in sowing wild oats. What 
we do to-day has some influence upon our con- 
duct to-morrow. No man can escape from him- 
self. He reaps the rewards of either virtue or 
vice. It is said that one of the greatest pleasures 
of old age is reviewing the memory of a well- 
spent youth. How important, then, that each 
day should carry with it the memory of some 
work well done. An evil deed may be pardoned, 
but it cannot be forgotten. It still leaves its im- 
pression upon the memory, and often upon the 
character. Sin is weakness. Do not for a mo- 
ment think that you can, even for a day, indulge 
in vice without paying the penalty. No one has 
ever found it easier to do right because he has 
done wrong. To know of the allurements and 
illusive pleasures of sin never leads to a life of 
virtue. 

It is sometimes argued by young men, that as 
sin is in the world they ought to know something 
about it. They regard it as a part of their educa- 
tion to know the world. There are many things 
that we can learn only by experience. No one 
can know of the alluring pleasures of sin without 
indulgence, nor can they know of the pain and 
remorse and misery that follow. But some ex- 
perience costs more than it is worth. By walking 
over molten metal a man can learn something, 




SOWING WILD OATS. 4 1 

but no one would advise him to do so. There 
are a great many things in the world we do not 
need to know. The world winks at many social 
evils. It is even argued that the public should 
have no concern in regard to the private life of 
any one. Be not deceived by such arguments. 
Even if it were possible to deceive the people, no 
man can deceive himself. Some time ago a man 
in public life in one of the Eastern States was 
approached by one who attempted to influence 
his conduct with a bribe. It was argued that the 
matter would be kept secret, and no one would 
ever be the wiser. The reply was, "I would know 
it, and, unfortunately, I shave myself, and I could 
not endure to look a rogue in the face every day 
of my life/' Should the world be willing to con- 
done a few years of dissipation, you cannot forget 
it, nor can you forgive it, nor can you undo it. 
A wound may heal, but it leaves a scar. You 
who are familiar with the private life of the men 
who have made the history of America illus- 
trious, know how some have died in the very 
vigor of manhood as a result of sowing wild oats. 
Evil habits formed in youth have grown stronger 
with age, until they cannot be broken; and suf- 
fering untold agonies, these men reap as they 
have sown. No position in life is an excuse for 
sin, nor can honor save a man from paying the 
penalty of his own conduct. 

A man cannot be too careful how he sows. I 
have been much impressed by a story. A man 



42 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

in Germany had a valuable piece of land that a 
neighbor wished to buy; but he refused to sell. 
As he would not sell, the neighbor finally in- 
duced him to rent him a field for one crop. The 
contract was duly drawn up and signed. The 
sowing took place, and the man watched with 
anxiety the young crop. But it seemed that his 
neighbor had sown poor seed, and would have 
no harvest. At the end of the year he demanded 
the return of his field. But the neighbor replied, 
"Not so, I have not yet reaped my crop. I have 
planted acorns, and they will not be ready for 
harvest for three hundred years." So it is with 
a young man when he starts out to sow his wild 
oats, only for a few years, and then reform. 
While he is indulging in the pleasures of sin the 
evil one is binding him hand and foot by the 
chains of evil habit. And when he realizes his 
danger and would reform, finds himself power- 
less. Take the devil at his own game and he will 
beat you every time. There is no safety only in 
virtue. Not to know sin is wisdom. To be 
ignorant of vice is knowledge. To be pure is 
strength. 

Evil thoughts always precede evil deeds. The 
mind is corrupted before the body yields. Be 
careful of your thoughts and of your words, and 
your conduct will not be evil. In the words of 
the wise man, "Keep thy heart with all diligence, 
for out of it are the issues of life." Let your 
conduct be always open and manly. Never do in 



JUST FOR FUN. 43 

secret what you would be ashamed to have 
known in public. When a young man is seen 
secretly entering- a questionable place of amuse- 
ment, he is not far from ruin. Let me urge you 
to keep your record clean. Stain not a single leaf 
in the record of your life by the story of evil in- 
dulgence. 

Every day is a fatal day. No hour is unim- 
portant. Every moment carries with it the seeds 
of destiny. Your life here as a student will de- 
termine to a great extent, both your character 
and your destiny. I would impress upon you 
the importance of sowing only truth and virtue. 
How you study, how you deal with your fellow- 
students, determines how you will act in after 
life. Do not worry about the reaping. Fill each 
day full of good deeds, keep your heart pure 
and your hands clean, and when the harvest time 
comes you will find no tares, but only sheaves 
of golden grain. 

VIII. 

JUST FOR FUN. 

Man was made to laugh. He is the only animal 
capable of enjoying wit and humor. He is so 
constituted that he may enjoy to the fullest ex- 
tent all the pleasures of his three-fold nature. "It 
is a beauty to look on the bright side of life, and 
to laugh rather than to cry. He who is first to 



44 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

laugh at the follies of humanity will always be 
first to come in fime of sorrow. 

It is not wrong to have a good time if we 
violate no natural law, nor interfere with the 
rights of others. And yet one of the greatest 
dangers of a student's life comes from what is 
said and done "just for fun." It is true that when 
alone we are subject to temptations that a friend 
would enable us to resist. But it is also true that 
several young persons, when together, will say 
and do things that none of them would be guilty 
of when alone. Every young person has realized 
this, and has time and again been surprised at 
his own conduct. Evil is contagious. One 
wrong thought, one unkind word, one thought- 
less deed leads to another until the end may be 
the loss of all that life holds dear. It is against 
this danger that I wish to warn you. When at 
your studies you are safe. It is only when seek- 
ing pleasure and recreation that temptations 
appear in so many attractive forms. It is then 
that you should be guided by reason, and not 
by impulse. "Just for fun" is never an excuse 
for any conduct. Young people are expected 
to have a good time. No one cares to see an 
old head on young shoulders. But the old say- 
ing that "boys will be boys" is no more an 
excuse for evil conduct than it is a reason for 
virtuous action. It is just as natural for boys 
to take pity on a wounded bird as it is for them 
to tie a tin can to the tail of some harmless dog. 



JUST FOR FUN. 45 

"Boys will be boys" does not account for either 
act, nor is there more fun in the one than in the 
other, only as the actors delight in virtue or vice. 

Why should students find more fun in annoy- 
ing a new student than in treating him kindly? 
"Just for fun" is no excuse for the many cases of 
cruelty occurring in our colleges every year. 
Legitimate fun does not unjustly offend, or un- 
duly humiliate anyone. Fun based upon cruelty 
is not fun, but vice. There is something wrong 
with the moral nature of young men who find 
pleasure in playing tricks upon those whom they 
regard either intellectually or physically inferior 
to themselves. It is the duty of the strong to 
protect the weak, not to offend them. I would 
have you, while here in school, don the armor of 
the true knight and make it a part of your life's 
work to care for the oppressed, and right wrong 
wherever found. 

Think twice before doing anything "just for 
fun." What is meant only for a moment's 
pastime may leave a lasting influence upon your 
character and your destiny. Let kindness rule 
your conduct, and you will not likely be led 
astray in the hours of recreation. "He who 
offends not in word is a perfect man." Be care- 
ful therefore of what you say. It is well when 
together to always imagine your mother or sister 
as present to hear all that is said. That will keep 
you out of undesirable society. Evil communi- 
cations not only corrupt good manners, but they 



46 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

destroy character as well. Put a key upon your 
lips and guard well what you say. Let every 
word you say be as a perfect coin from the mint. 

No one should ever become too old to enjoy 
fun. The body may become old, but the heart 
should ever remain young. Laugh when you 
can, cry when you must. Work earnestly when 
you work, and in the hours of recreation give 
yourself fully to the pleasures of the moment; 
being guided by reason and not by impulse. A 
good hearty laugh is better for a man than medi- 
cine. I almost envy the man who can laugh 
heartily. Shakespeare warns us against the man 
who never laughs, and not without reason. 

How a man seeks pleasure determines his 
character more than the manner in which he 
works. Let me know how you enjoy yourself 
and I can tell what you are. Water and young 
people seek their level. By the company you 
keep you are judged. Those who associate to- 
gether may be engaged in different vocations, but 
they enjoy the same sports and do the same 
things "just for fun." The little things make up 
life. When you go into a strange community 
you are judged not so much by your work as by 
the manner in which you spend your leisure mo- 
ments. When a business man makes inquiries 
in regard to a young man whom he wishes to em- 
ploy, the leading questions are, "Does he have 
expensive habits? What is the character of his 



IMPORTANCE OF CHARACTER. 47 

associates ?" From the answer to these ques- 
tions the situation is secured or lost. 

It does not pay to live "just for fun." Be on 
your guard. Find enjoyment in all things, but 
the sweetest pleasures of life come from duties 
well done. True enjoyment needs no conceal- 
ment. When you make a mistake do not plead 
the excuse, "I was just in fun," but bravely take 
the responsibility and right the wrong so far as 
you may be able. Be brave, be honest, be just, 
and then you will always have a good time. 

IX. 
IMPORTANCE OF CHARACTER. 

A man's worth in the world does not depend 
so much upon his ability as upon his character. 
The great demand to-day is not for men who can 
do, but for men who can be trusted; men who 
will do an honest day's work without being 
watched. The young person who always con- 
siders the interest of his employer as sacred as 
his own will seldom have any difficulty in secur- 
ing a position. Those who never do more than 
they are compelled to do, and shirk the unpleas- 
ant work, are the ones who are always complain- 
ing of not being able to find anything to do. 

A young man should regard his character as 
one of his most valuable and sacred possessions. 
He cannot be too careful of what he says and 
does. The least violation of the strict principles 



48 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

of rectitude is dangerous. He must be known 
among his associates as a man who can be 
trusted. His word must be as good as his bond. 
Every promise made must be sacredly kept, even 
to his own hurt. In business, in society, he must 
be a man that can be relied upon. Such a char- 
acter is worth more than money to a young man. 
It gives him a commanding influence, and opens 
up to him many opportunities of securing em- 
ployment. It is often regarded as smart to take 
the advantage of another in a business transac- 
tion. It is called shrewdness, and not dishonesty. 
Some persons regard everything as fair in busi- 
ness, and they expect every man to look out for 
himself. Their theory is that the defect in an 
article must be detected by the man who buys, 
even if he who sells does guarantee that it is 
perfect. Business conducted upon such princi- 
ples must in the end fail. The great commercial 
houses in our country were founded upon hon- 
esty. What they said could be relied upon, and 
people were not afraid to trust them. Even in 
business, honesty pays. He who is honest sim- 
ply from policy is dishonest from principle. 
Honesty must permeate a man's character and 
be a part of his business code. 

I am aware that with many persons the old 
fashioned honesty that is all wool and a yard wide 
is not popular. They do not regard the interests 
of another as sacred as their own. They do not 
in business transactions regard every man as a 



IMPORTANCE OF CHARACTER. 49 

brother. So they take advantage of the innocent 
and oppress the weak and call it business. 
Young men cannot be too careful of this delusive 
reasoning. There is but one moral code for 
business and society. Nothing can make wrong 
right. Your character must be sacred, and you 
can have nothing to do with those who would 
prosper by dishonest means. Character is what 
you are; reputation is what people think of you. 
They may not always be the same. Character is al- 
ways real, reputation may be misleading. A per- 
son of bad character may for a time' have an 
excellent reputation. A man's reputation may 
change often, but character seldom changes. A 
good reputation may be lost and won, but when 
character is lost it is gone forever. Be careful 
with your character, and your reputation will 
take care of itself. But, however good your 
character, you may have a very bad reputation. 
You cannot always determine what your reputa- 
tion will be. Your motives may be misunder- 
stood, and evil disposed persons may for a time 
cause you trouble. If this should occur, be not 
dismayed. Stand firm by the principles of right. 
God and truth will always vindicate the man 
who does his duty. 

Character is the one thing important. It alone 
will survive amid the wreck of empires and the 
clash of worlds. Whatever misfortune may 
overtake you, let there be no stain upon your 
character. Like gold tried in the fire it will 



50 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

shine resplendent amid every disaster and calam- 
ity of life. Whatever is not honest is dangerous, 
however expedient it may seem. It matters not 
how successful you may be in life, the best legacy 
you can leave your children is the record of a 
noble character. It will be to them an inspira- 
tion and a guide. 

Now is the time you are forming your char- 
acters. What you are in school is what you will 
be in life. You need good counsel. Laugh not 
at things sacred. Take the Bible as your guide. 
Let the great aim of your life be to shape your 
character in accordance with the teachings of 
Christ. Whatever you may think of religion you 
will find the above a good moral code. It will 
give you a character above reproach. Great are 
the responsibilities of life, and many are the 
temptations you will encounter, but stand firm 
by the old Book. It will be a safe guide. Follow 
its teachings. And when life and its cares are 
over, friends and neighbors will rise up and call 
you blessed. 

X. 

SCHOOL FRIENDSHIPS. 

Among the most sacred memories of school 
life are the friendships formed and the class as- 
sociations. Friendship is a sacred tie that binds 
kindred souls together. It divides all the sor- 
rows of life and more than doubles the pleasures. 
It makes the weak strong and the brave more 



SCHOOL FRIENDSHIPS. 5 1 

valiant. It adds to every virtue and makes vice 
repulsive. Many of the happiest hours of school 
life are spent in communing with friends. They 
help each other over the difficult places in life. 
They counsel each other when in doubt, and 
cheer and strengthen each other when in trouble. 
It is well for every student to have one confi- 
dential friend — one whom he can trust, and in 
whose judgment he has confidence. There are 
times when, away from home, every young per- 
son needs the counsel and advice of a friend. 
Friends can save each other from many mistakes, 
even in school. If you are hasty and impulsive 
you need the counsel of one who is slow and 
conservative. In your societies you do not al- 
ways act wisely. A friend can point out your 
blunders, and help you to avoid them in the 
future. You may be hasty in speech. Your as- 
sociates may not understand you. How impor- 
tant to have a friend to tell you of these things. 
You can give each other suggestions in regard to 
dress, to conversation, and a hundred other 
things that other persons would not care to 
speak to you about. We are often rude when 
we do not realize it, and unjust when we mean 
to be kind. A friend can help us to remove the 
rough places from our manners and make us 
more agreeable to all. A friend, however, is not 
necessary to help you with your studies, for you 
do the best work when you study alone. If a 
friend is to remove the difficulties from your way, 



52 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

he will weaken you rather than strengthen you. 

How pleasant in the hours of recreation to talk 
of the future with a friend, to develop plans for 
the grander achievements that await us. How 
we strengthen each other, and though our hopes 
may not be fully realized, life is made more real 
by these school day plans of victories to be won 
in the noble future. In these quiet hours you 
will enjoy talking of life, its duties and its respon- 
sibilities. There are so many things you do not 
care to talk about only to your friends. No one 
cares to reveal his hopes and fears to the public. 
Friendship is a source of strength in time of 
duty, and one of the greatest pleasures in the 
hours of recreation. 

There is no pledge more sacred than that of 
friendship. Friends may become estranged, but 
the seal of what has been told in the bond of 
friendship will never be broken. Of course there 
are false friends, those who would betray any 
trust. Beware of these. True friendship is never 
formed from selfish motives. It seeks to help 
rather than to be helped. It appeals to all the 
noblest emotions of the human soul. The man 
who has no regard for the obligations of friend- 
ship is fit for any crime. Cherish the friendship 
now formed. Keep up the correspondence after 
you leave school. A letter from a friend is al- 
ways a source of pleasure. Misunderstandings 
may arise, and then be careful what you do. 
Never write any unkind words in a letter. If 



SCHOOL FRIENDSHIPS. 53 

you must, speak the bitter word, but do not 
write it. Long after the offense has been for- 
gotten, trembling hands may unfold that letter, 
grown yellow with age, and read again those 
bitter words. It is a good rule to be always care- 
ful of what you write. Never write anything you 
may wish to recall. 

Have but few confidential friends, but aim to 
have many social friends. Make friends of all 
your associates. Beware of the hasty remark 
and the unkind word. Deal justly with men, so 
that all whom you meet may become your friends. 
The secret of being popular in school is simply 
being just and considerate of the feelings of 
others. Never make an enemy if you can help it. 
Get out of your way, if necessary, to keep from 
wounding a friend. In unexpected moments 
friends will help you. Little acts of kindness are 
often forgotten, but they bear fruit in due time. 
It does not pay to say sharp things. Reprove 
kindly if you must, but never wound the feelings 
of another without cause. You will never have 
too many friends. 

Study to be a true friend, violate no pledge, 
aim to be a wise counselor and safe guide. So 
live that your life may be an inspiration and a 
help to others. Be true to the principles of right, 
and in the language of Shakespeare, 'To thine 
own self be true, and it must follow as the night 
the day, that thou canst not then be false to any 
man." 



54 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

XI. 

THE USE OF BOOKS. 

Milton says that a good book is the life blood 
of a master spirit. A book lives because it ob- 
tains life from the author. He is wise, therefore, 
who makes friends of his books. They can 
counsel him in times of trouble, cheer him in 
seasons of despondency, and lead him in hours of 
doubt. They are always ready to lead and in- 
struct, but they never intrude their advice, nor 
oppress us by their presence. In that are they 
model friends. 

A taste for good reading, and to know how to 
use good books, is the greater part of an educa- 
tion. Reading is the queen of all studies. It is 
the key that unlocks the gates of knowledge. It 
not only commands the present, but opens up all 
the treasures of the past. He who knows how to 
read wisely has all things at his command. He 
calls, and the ancient philosophers come and talk 
with him; he asks wisdom and the wise men of 
earth counsel him; he seeks knowledge and the 
acquirements of a thousand years lie open before 
him. 

When going into a strange community I can 
give you no better counsel than to take with you 
a few good books. Make them your companions 
until you have an opportunity to select desirable 
associates. It will shield you from temptation, 



THE USE OF BOOKS. 55 

and comfort you in hours of loneliness. Culti- 
vate, then, the reading habit. Improve the idle 
hours. It is easy to waste enough of time in a 
few years to master a language, or become 
familiar with some of the sciences. One hour 
each day devoted to reading, will enable you to 
become conversant with the masterpieces of 
English literature. 

Read only the best of books. The reading of 
impure books andj trashy literature ruins the 
minds and morals of thousands of young persons 
every year. You are influenced by what you 
read, and you should be as careful in selecting 
the books you read as in selecting your asso- 
ciates. As a rule a book that is worth reading at 
all is worth reading twice. Master what you 
read. One book well read and made your own 
by careful thought will add more to your strength 
of mind and character than a dozen books care- 
lessly read. Do not take for granted everything 
you read. Think over it. Challenge every 
doubtful statement, and determine how wide the 
application. Notice how well the author main- 
tains his position. Read both sides of a subject. 
Read not to maintain your present position, but 
to ascertain the truth. Aim not to be consistent. 
If to-day you learn that you were wrong yester- 
day, get on the right side of the question at once. 
There is no consistency but truth. The well 
read man is liberal in his opinions. He realizes 
that he may not know all the truth, and that a 



56 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

better knowledge of the subject may cause him 
to change his views. Let your reading be varied. 
Do not confine yourself to the same kind of 
books. Endeavor to be well informed on many 
subjects, though you may have time to master 
but few. 

The field of literature is so wide, there is so 
much that might be read with profit, that it is 
difficult to tell just what we should read. We 
are more interested in the present than in the 
past. For that reason it is well to read a few 
newspapers and magazines, that we may know 
what is going on around us. Great events arc 
transpiring to-day, and it is important that we 
know how men think and what they are doing. 
This we can learn from the daily papers, as they 
contain the material for future histories. 

Among the great books Shakespeare stands 
first. There are some objectionable features in 
his writings, but his work contains so many 
things so well said that no well refined person 
can be ignorant of his writings. Literature is 
full of quotations from Shakespeare. Read him 
carefully, and separate the gold from the dross. 
Read some from Dickens, especially David 
Copperfield, the favored child of his genius. 
Read some of Thackeray's works, and the other 
English novelists. Do not aim to read all the 
works of any author. Just read the best. In 
poetry read Tennyson, Longfellow and Lowell. 
There are selections from the other poets that 



THE USE OF MONEY. 57 

you will read. Snow Bound, by Whittier, is well 
worth your attention. Read Ben Hur, by Lew 
Wallace. It is a book that was written for a 
purpose. Todd's Students' Manual will be worth 
many times the price to any of you. Read 
Irving's works. Read history, and the biogra- 
phies of the men who make history. Cultivate 
the taste for reading, and you will have n& trou- 
ble in selecting good books. 

Above all, read the Bible. Make it your daily 
counselor and guide. Never be too busy to read 
a short selection every day. It is a book above 
all other books. Readmit, study it, follow its 
teachings, and you will not only know how to 
live, but be fitted for the higher and better life 
that awaits you when this life is ended. 

XII. 

THE USE OF MONEY. 

Carlyle says, Tell him a man's ideas of God and 
he will tell you what he is. So, what a man 
thinks of money, and the manner in which he 
uses it, is a good indication of his character. 
Money is a means of power. In fact it seems al- 
most all powerful. It marshals armies, equips 
navies, tunnels mountains, and carries on the 
commerce of the world in a thousand various 
forms. In these days of shady transactions it 
secures honor, fame, social position; and it is 
reported that it can even secure a husband or 



58 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

wife with a title. The price, however, is not 
quoted as the market fluctuates according to sup- 
ply and demand. 

In the hands of a just man money is the 
source of an untold blessing to humanity. Nearly 
every college, university and charitable institu- 
tion in the country is the monument to the 
benevblence of some man of wealth. Money is 
power. It increases itself, and in the hands of 
an unjust man it becomes the means of coining 
the very life blood^of even widows and orphans 
into money. It may even thwart justice, and 
often makes vice seem more attractive than 
virtue. The manner in which it is used deter- 
mines whether it shall be a blessing or a curse 
to humanity. 

As money is the standard of value in com- 
mercial transactions, it becomes an easy method 
of determining how lightly a man prizes his) 
various surroundings and possessions. For that 
reason it is an index of character. How a man 
uses money determines what he thinks of the 
things that command money. 

The idea of the importance of money, formed 
in youth, seldom changes. Were some person to 
give each of you a sum of money to be used as 
you thought best, the manner in which you 
disposed of it would enable him to tell much of 
your future life. How important, then, that you 
early place a correct estimate upon the value of 
money. Young people are sometimes careless. 



THE USE OF MONEY. 59 

They do not place a just estimate upon the rela- 
tive value of things. Money, in itself, is of no 
use. Each one is supposed to spend his money 
so as to secure the greatest benefit or the most 
pleasure. Because we look at the world differ- 
ently we do not spend our money in the same 
way. In this one thing, however, we agree, that 
he who spends his money to-day cannot expect 
to enjoy its possession to-morrow. 

It is a good plan for you to keep a record of 
all the money you spend. At the end of each 
month or two you can review your accounts, and 
see in what you might have spent your money 
more wisely. This will be found a good means 
to overcome carelessness in the use of money. 
A few nickles or dimes spent each day for what 
is not really necessary amounts to quite a little 
sum in a short time. It is not only the money 
that might be saved, but an evil habit could be 
overcome. It is a good rule to think before 
spending even a small sum of money. I believe 
it is a duty to make the best use of your money, 
not to hoard it, but to spend it at the proper 
time and in the proper manner. 

It is not always economical to save money. 
When you need a thing and have the money to 
pay for it, as a rule, it is wise to buy it. "There 
is a withholding that maketh not rich." Too 
many persons and bodies deprive themselves of 
many of the pleasures of life that they might 
enjoy. If, in order to do good work in your 



6o X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

studies, you need a book, buy it and save in some- 
thing else. But few persons can buy everything 
they would like to have. In making a wise selec- 
tion depends much of the success and enjoyment 
of life. Be saving, but not penurious. Place a 
high estimate upon money, but value it only as 
a means of doing good, and do not fall down and 
worship it. Men suffering the n6ed of fuel, cloth- 
ing and food have died clutching gold in their 
fleshless hands. How the love of it grows until 
it destroys every noble sentiment and impulse of 
the human soul. Earn it, use it, enjoy it, and 
make the world better for having it. 

Of recent years it has become common for 
certain classes of persons to condemn all men of 
wealth, simply because they have been successful 
in acquiring money. Wealth is no indication of 
vice, as poverty is no test of virtue. The condi- 
tions of society are such that rich men are more 
common to-day than in the earlier history of our 
country. The people are no more wicked, how- 
ever. Our men of wealth have been a great 
blessing to our country in many ways. It re- 
quires vast sums of money to carry on the indus- 
trial enterprises of to-day. Of recent years the 
resources of the country have been developed 
and wealth has increased rapidly. It would do 
me no wrong were some man with capital to 
come here and develop the resources of this sec- 
tion, however great a fortune he may acquire. 
It is generally supposed that a few wealthy men 



THE USE OF MONEY. 6l 

are desirable residents of any State. Do not 
think that I for a moment approve of any of the 
questionable ways of acquiring a fortune. Sim- 
ply do not condemn a man because he has money. 
Judge him by the same law that you do your 
neighbor, and determine the virtue of his for- 
tune by the manner in which it has been ac- 
quired. • 

One of the greatest dangers that a young man 
encounters in starting out in life is the need of 
money. Thousands of bright hopes and cher- 
ished ambitions are. blighted and blasted every 
year by the inordinate love of money. Every- 
thing seems to call for money, and he is strong 
who falls not. Let me urge you, my young 
friends, to form a resolution and stand firm upon 
the principles of rectitude in all matters pertain- 
ing to the use of money. However great and 
pressing may seem the present need of money, 
depart not one iota from the path of virtue. You 
will find this as a shield and a protection to you 
in many an hour of severe temptation. There 
is no safety on the other side of the line. The 
many persons who defraud friends and misuse 
money never intended to make such shipwreck 
of life when the first evil step was taken. How 
often it is stated that the dishonesty existed for 
years before it was discovered. It is not wise to 
walk where there is no safety and where thou- 
sands fall. 

If you would avoid temptation form the habit 



62 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

of living within your means. Do not dress more 
expensively than you can afford, nor engage in 
amusements for which you cannot pay. Do not 
make fast associates of those who live beyond 
your means. Do not pretend what you are not 
in society or elsewhere, for sooner or later you 
will come on a solid footing and the change will 
be unpleasant. A debt acquired for a^wise pur- 
pose is not a bad thing for a young man. It 
gives him steadfastness and a purpose in life. 
But money borrowed for what is useless or for 
pleasure is ruinous to character. The pleasures 
you cannot pay for to-day it is not wise to enjoy 
till to-morrow. If a young man is willing to pay 
the price and start out in the world with the 
determination of amassing a fortune he will prob- 
ably succeed, but there is also a probability of 
his spending his later years in the penitentiary. 
Beware of the dishonest dollar. It carries with it 
a curse and will burn a hole in any man's pocket, 
through which the honest ones will escape. 
There are in various sections of our country 
stately mansions, fallen in ruins. From one of 
the results you learn the story of money acquired 
by dishonest means; the house being erected, the 
wealth of its builder, by the dissipation of his 
sons, has been squandered and the family ruined 
in fortune and character, and its very name has 
become a by-word and a reproach. It seems to 
be an inexorable law of nature that dishonest 
money cannot carry with it the blessing of its pos- 



SCHOOL RIVALRY. 63 

sessor. He who would enjoy money must ac- 
quire it honestly, keep it wisely and use it 
judiciously. Study to know how to acquire, to 
save, and to spend; and the money that comes 
to you will bring manifold pleasures and go forth 
again bearing blessings to humanity. 

XIII. 

SCHOOL RIVALRY. 

He who has no desire to excel seldom does 
any work well. He who has no longing for 
something better than he has ever known is but 
little better than the beasts of the field that 
perish. To receive the praise of the master work- 
man is a worthy incentive to labor. To endeavor 
f o stand among the first of his profession should 
be the ambition of every young person. What- 
ever is worth doing at all should be well done. 
Nothing that ought to be done is unimportant. 

"In the ancient days of art, 

Builders wrought with greatest care; 

Both the seen and unseen part, 
For the Gods see everywhere." 

Every student should strive to excel. There 
is no one who does not have a feeling of satis- 
faction when he solves a problem upon which 
the other members of the class have failed. There 
is nothing wrong in such a feeling. The boy 
who would just as soon be at the foot as at the 



64 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

head of the class usually holds his position at 
the foot. Every one likes to see the result of his 
labor, and the student determines his advance- 
ment by those in the same class. If he excels 
them he is satisfied. 

But some of you ask in a class of twenty: 
"How can you expect each to excel? There can 
be only one best." It does not matter so much 
whether you stand first in your class or not, but 
it is important that you always do your best. 
Unless you have some desire to excel, you will 
not put forth your best efforts. When you have 
done your very best it makes but little difference 
what your standing may be in the class. You 
have surpassed all former efforts, and you have 
gained strength. You deserve but little credit 
for standing first in the class unless you obtain 
the position by doing your level best. It is the 
effort you put forth, and not the position you 
hold that determines what praise you deserve. 

Rivalry in school work makes no enemies. 
The warmest friends may be the closest rivals. 
He who strives to excel does his friend no wrong. 
He who succeeds finds pleasure in his success, 
but no joy in the failure of others. To endeavor 
to win credit in school work by dishonest means, 
or to cause the failure of others by trickery is 
unworthy of notice. Better to fail always than 
not to win by fair means. None of you, I trust, 
have any feeling of envy when you see the success 
of others. It is an evil spirit. Do your best and 



SCHOOL RIVALRY. 65 

rejoice at what others accomplish. Faithful work 
brings its own reward, and he who honestly 
strives to excel will never lose his reward. 

We offer you no incentive to study, save the 
reward that comes from duty well done, no honor 
save that which comes from having: done vour 
best, no boon save the strength and knowledge 
acquired. The desire to excel is simply an in- 
centive to study and a test of strength. Young 
people, as a rule, lack ambition. They do not 
accomplish what they might because they do not 
put forth the proper effort. Aim high. Whether 
in school or in the conflict of life, endeavor to 
excel. 

Rivalry in school work becomes an evil only 
when it is coupled with envy and finds pleasure 
in the failure of others. But no one should be 
guilty of such feelings. The sooner the young 
person realizes that he cannot always have his 
own way the better. Even when you do your 
best you will be excelled by others of superior 
merit. All you should ask is a fair opportunity 
to show what you can do. Then if you win all 
well; if not take nothing from the honors of 
those who have surpassed you. If anyone has 
done better than you have done he surely de- 
serves credit. 

Carry with you, then, in whatever work you 
may engage, a desire to excel. Treat your rivals 
fairly. Be ambitious. Xever rest satisfied with 
present attainments. Even though you may have 



66 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

surpassed others, go forward till you have put 
forth your best efforts. Nothing but your best 
should ever satisfy you in your work. Your 
noblest achievements will always come from an 
honest effort to do well the work before you. 
There are no honors to be acquired that can be 
compared with the satisfaction of knowing that 
in all the conflicts of life, you have done your 
duty and have done it well. 

XIV. 

RESPECT FOR AUTHORITY. 

The lessons of obedience should be early 
learned and never forgotten. No one is too 
young to obey, nor are any too old to respect 
authority. In the home, in the school, and in the 
social circle law reigns supreme. In all govern- 
ment and in all civilized countries there are those 
placed in authority over us. Even among sav- 
age tribes the authority of the ruler is often abso- 
lute. Obedience should be among the first les- 
sons taught at the mother's knee. For he who 
has not learned to obey finds no congenial home 
anywhere. 

Many young persons have no respect for 
parental authority. Boys and girls, barely in 
their teens, make all arrangements to do a thing 
and ask permission afterwards, if at all. They 
do as they please because they think it would be 



RESPECT FOR AUTHORITY. 6? 

an indication of weakness for them to obey. 
Young America is too independent. He has but 
little respect for authority of any kind. The best 
thing that can happen to the average boy is to be 
placed under the control of someone who will 
teach him to obey and to respect the powers 
that be. 

Every person likes to have his own way. When 
a number of persons live together it is necessary 
some should yield to others. Even in your so- 
cieties here you cannot all have your choice of 
officers. The few must submit to the will of the 
majority. Contend earnestly to carry your point 
in all questions at issue, but if defeated yield 
gracefully to the majority, and be ready to try 
the issue again. Occasionally we find students 
in school who become sullen if they cannot have 
their own way. There are some who will have 
nothing to do with the societies unless they can 
be run according to their ideas. We find such 
persons everywhere. They expect to run every 
organization they join, their own way, or ruin it. 
Such persons make themselves miserable. He 
who would lead must first learn to obey. The 
popular person is the one who can command so 
as to please others. Ability is always recognized 
and appreciated, but selfishness is condemned by 
all. He who will be great must be willing to be 
the servant of all. It is by serving, and not by 
commanding that we obtain authority. Even in 
your societies he who seeks honors is seldom re- 



68 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

warded. Merit is ever modest and willing to 
serve, but ready also, if necessary, to lead. 

In every school certain rules and regulations 
are necessary. There must be some authority, 
some power to decide all questions of policy and 
government. In our school we endeavor to re- 
spect your wishes in all things. We have but few 
requirements, and these we believe you recognize 
to be for your own good. We enter into no con- 
test with you. You are expected to do your duty. 
We use no coercive force. It is yours to obey or 
not, as you think best. It is as important to learn 
the lessons of obedience and respect for authority 
while in school as any other lessons. All things 
cannot be done according to your wishes. The 
good of the school may require you to submit in 
many things. The strong must help to bear the 
burdens of the weak. The question is not always, 
"Is it right; but is it expedient?" Of this one 
thing, however, you may rest assured, that in 
school, in the home, or in society, it is always 
honorable to obey the authority placed over you. 
When necessary cheerfully submit to the will of 
others. Disregard of rightful authority is revo- 
lution. No one ever shows his independence by 
refusing to obey, but his willfulness. Whether in 
school or in life train yourself to obey in order 
that you may be able to command. 

The most disagreeable man in the community 
is the one who has never learned to obey; who is 
determined either to rule or to ruin. He is found 



IMPORTANCE OF HEALTH. 69 

in school affairs, in the church and in nearly every 
social organization. Take a lesson from him, 
and avoid the great mistake of his life. He makes 
others miserable, and does not secure his own 
happiness. The respect you have for authority 
while in school you will carry with you in the 
busy affairs of life. By obeying you gain 
strength. Obedience is the cornerstone of every 
noble character. It is a source of strength, of 
power, and of w T isdom. He who obeys is not 
only manly, but he is also wise. 

The great contest of your life will not be for 
supremacy over others, but for the mastery of 
yourself. You have already found that when 
you would do good, evil is ever present with you. 
Your passions and desires must be brought into 
subjection to your spiritual nature — the law of 
Christ. This will be a daily conflict; fierce indeed 
will be the battle, but great is also the glory and 
the reward of those who come out victorious. 

XV. 

IMPORTANCE OF HEALTH. 

Hundreds of young persons leave school every 
year ruined in health. The student should have 
good health, but the violation of natural laws 
brings sad punishment. The first duty of every 
person is to take care of his health. Knowledge 
acquired at the sacrifice of health costs too much. 
It not only renders success impossible, but makes 



JO X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

failure doubly bitter. The life of the student is 
not necessarily ruinous to health. The young 
person ought to leave school stronger in mind, 
body and morals than when he entered. 

Many students pay but little regard to their 
health. When we consider how they live, the 
wonder is that more of them are not afflicted. 
Plenty of pure air is essential to the well being 
of all persons, and yet many students pay but 
little attention to the ventilation of their rooms. 
It is especially important that the bed-room 
should have an abundance of fresh air; and often 
this is neglected when students study and sleep 
in the same room. It is no wonder, after breath- 
ing impure air all night, that they complain of 
that dull, lifeless feeling, loss^ of appetite, and 
lack of interest in school work. There is no medi- 
cine like plenty of pure air, to give life and vigor 
to the listless student. It is far better than any 
sarsaparilla. It is nature's elixir. The windows 
and transoms should be thrown open every day 
when you are not in the room. Keep the air in 
your room pure and fresh, if you would enjoy 
good health. 

Daily exercise is essential to good health. 
This many students neglect. When they have a 
full program they think they do not have time 
for exercise. This is a fatal mistake. No student 
is ever too busy to spend two or three hours every 
day in judicious exercise. However full the pro- 
gram nothing is gained by using this time for 



IMPORTANCE OF HEALTH. 7 1 

study. Xo young person should think it tiresome 
to walk two or three miles. A brisk walk in the 
open air will make almost anyone feel like work. 
There should be a regular time for exercise the 
same as for study. How much time should be 
devoted to exercise depends upon the student, 
but good health should be secured. 

Many students secure insufficient sleep. They 
study late and have but little energy the next 
day. Xothing is gained by this. There is more 
poetry than wisdom in burning the midnight oil. 
It does not pay to burn a candle at both ends. 
Time spent in necessary sleep is never wasted. 
Each person must determine for himself how 
much sleep he needs, and endeavor to secure that 
amount every night. Most persons get along 
well on seven hours sleep. Some do not require 
so much, while others need more rest. To sleep 
well the mind must be free from care. Do not 
spend the night worrying over the troubles of the 
day. Forget your studies and school work and 
sleep soundly. It is sometimes advisable to 
spend a half hour in conversation, or in light 
reading before retiring for the night. 

Irregular habits will finally ruin the health of* 
any one, and yet, many students are careless in 
this matter. There should be a regular time for 
sleeping, eating, working, and resting. Fre- 
quently a student will study quite late at night 
and then not care to rise in time for breakfast. 
As a result he does not feel like work the entire 



"J2 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

day. When a student does not feel like eating 
breakfast there is something wrong. A short 
walk in the early morning will frequently bring- 
back an appetite. 

Needless exposure is another fruitful source 
of sickness among students. Girls, especially, 
offend in this. In early spring and even in the 
winter, they will wear light dresses in damp 
weather and stand in the open air till they be- 
come chilled, and then go to their rooms with 
cold feet, and study for three or four hours. Is 
it any wonder that they become sick? The 
student cannot be too careful in regard to dress. 
The rule is to keep the feet warm and the head 
cool. Beware of damp feet. If you would 
avoid sickness avoid becoming chilled, and keep 
your feet warm. 

Dissipation and nightly revels ruin the health 
of many a student. I have no reference to those 
students who indulge in the use of intoxicating 
drinks, and after a restless night go to their 
classes with bleared eyes and devoid of energy. 
There is another kind of dissipation, quite com- 
mon among students, and also quite ruinous to 
the health. The eating of candies and sweet 
meats at all hours of the day is the beginning of 
many ills. First comes the loss of appetite and 
then dyspepsia with all its train of suffering. Eat- 
ing of peanuts and sardines and kindred articles 
before retiring at night produces many evil ef- 
fects, which are soon recognized by the student. 



CHEERFULNESS. 73 

Should it be desirable to eat a lunch at night, 
crackers and milk would not be objectionable. 
For most persons it is unwise to eat at night. He 
who would have good health should avoid the 
habit of eating between meals. Many students 
eat too many peanuts and too much candy. It 
is only a habit and should never be formed. Dur- 
ing the winter months an apple after each meal 
is both a food and a medicine. Fruit of all kinds 
in season is conducive to health. Use it judi- 
ciously. It is no luxury. 

Study faithfully, earnestly; but look first to 
your health, so that you may have that strength 
of mind and body that will enable you to make 
the most of the knowledge acquired. Nothing 
can ever compensate you for the loss of your 
health. Study to be of a strong physique, and 
then cultivate your mind and morals. By doing 
this you will not only achieve success, but you 
will be able to enjoy the reward of your labor. 
Breathe fresh air, take plenty of exercise, keep a 
clear conscience, develop the talents God has 
given you, and you will enjoy all the blessings of 
a long and useful life. 

XVI. 

CHEERFULNESS. 

If they serve who simply stand and wait, cheer- 
ful people surely have a mission in the world. 
Blessings rest upon him who makes us laugh. If 



74 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

a sigh drives a nail in our coffin, a hearty laugh 
will surely pull one out. Cheerfulness is a sure 
cure for many of the ills of life. A hearty laugh 
is better than medicine. Cultivate, then, a cheer- 
ful disposition. Look on the bright side of life. 
Laugh when you can; cry only when you must. 
A smile, a cheerful word to the home-sick stu- 
dent, does much to make' the world look brighter. 
To the discouraged a cheerful friend is always a 
welcome visitor. A cheerful person adds much 
to the comfort and happiness of his friends. 
When he enters the social circle every one feels 
the genial influence of his presence at once. 

Some people complain because they are not 
well, and are not well because they are always 
complaining. Cheerfulness produces health, and 
good health makes people cheerful. When your 
system is out of order, don't whine, but try qui- 
nine. There is no use in the world for a whine. 
Those who find their greatest pleasure in com- 
plaining do no good. They are never happy 
unless they are miserable, and are always miser- 
able because they are continually whining. Such 
persons make their friends feel uncomfortable. 
Their very presence is depressing. The world 
is made no better by whining. Take things as 
you find them and make the best of them. 

Cheerfulness can be cultivated. When you 
can, say a bright word. It is not necessary to 
say cross things, and think over how badly you 
are treated by others. Cheerfulness is not care- 



CHEERFULNESS. 75 

lessness. The cheerful person is always serious. 
He who is always ready to laugh with you will be 
the first to comfort you in your sorrows. It is 
seldom necessary to make a sharp reply. Even 
an impertinent question may be so answered as 
to give no offense. Endeavor to leave the genial 
influence of your presence upon the strangers 
you meet. A w T ord of cheer may be cherished 
for years, although the person by whom spoken 
may be unknown. 

The teacher especially should be of a cheerful 
disposition. We fear that many a good boy has 
been punished because his teacher was sullen 
and morose. A cheerful teacher will have cheer- 
ful pupils, and a smile will be found a more ef- 
fective means of government than a frown. As 
the teacher is, so is the school; and he who would 
have cheerful pupils must study to be cheerful 
himself. 

Carry with you a cheerful disposition. Let 
every one you meet feel the sunshine of your 
presence. Keep a clear conscience, and you will 
have but few occasions to wear a long face. Do 
your best under all circumstances, and then never 
worry over results. It is your mission to sow; 
others may do the reaping. When things don't 
go to suit you make the best of it, but don't 
worry. It is not work that wears out so many 
young lives, but constant worrying about what 
can't be helped. Work earnestly, sleep soundly, 
and live cheerfully. 



j6 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

Be true, be earnest, be cheerful. Carry with 
you the sunshine of a cheerful disposition, and 
you will always be a welcome visitor. It will add 
happiness to your own life, make you more use- 
ful in the world, and enable you to leave pleasant 
memories behind you when your work is ended. 

XVII. 

THE WAITING TIME. 

Waiting is sometimes as important as working. 
The waiting time, however, always comes after 
the work is done. In the old song we sing the 
waiting time is the hardest time of all. Some 
persons succeed remarkably at waiting, but they 
make the mistake of waiting before working. 
They dream and wait for the reaping time and 
neglect the sowing. When the harvest time 
comes they have no sheaves, no golden grain. 

It is well to know how, and then to wait. It 
is given to no man to see the full result of his 
labors. Much of our work is done in faith. It 
is not necessary to quit working in order to 
await results. Keep working, improve the op- 
portunities as they pass, and in due season will 
come the reaping time. He who folds his hands 
and waits during the bright hours of the day may 
wait patiently but he will receive no reward. 
Rest follows labor. It is only when the work is 
fully done that we can await the results. 

Disappointments come to everyone. Then it 



THE WAITING TIME. JJ 

is well to be able to work and to wait. If you 
expect a position and do not get it, do not sit 
down and wait for another opportunity for doing 
something. Go to work and find a position or 
make one. Work while you wait. Many a man 
makes a fortune while his neighbor sits and sighs 
and waits for something to turn up. When you 
cannot do what you would do, do what you can. 
Laugh at difficulties. When things don't turn 
up to suit you, turn them up. It is of such stuff 
heroes are made. Waste no time in waiting when 
you ought to be sowing. Misfortunes may over- 
take you; they cannot always be avoided. But if 
you fall be sure that you fall on your feet. If it 
is necessary to give up your chosen work, do 
something else. Fortune smiles upon the brave 
who yield not to discouragement. Every per- 
son should be able to do one thing well, and 
many things passably well. The object of an 
education is to give you command of your facul- 
ties, and to enable you to master the situation 
when the unexpected happens. Any one can 
steer to port when all winds are favorable, but 
when the tides and storms are adverse only the 
brave and daring anchor in the harbor. How 
'foolish for the boy who has the twelve bladed 
knife to stand and cry when he breaks one blade. 
Let him open another blade and go to work. If 
you cannot do what you can do best, do not wait 
for brighter days, but do what you can do well. 
But there comes a time when there is nothing 



78 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

to be done but to wait. When the ballots have 
all been cast, and the polls closed there is nothing 
to be done but to await the result of the counting. 
That is the trying time. To wait patiently and 
not worry. Hard work kills but few persons. It 
is the worry when the work is done that causes 
so many persons to give up the work. Each day 
do your best, and then worry not. Await the 
results of your labors. If mistakes have been 
made, no tears can undo them. The past is gone, 
the record must stand. But worry not; all the 
bright golden years of the future are before you. 
With a brave heart and a courageous spirit take 
up your work and endeavor to avoid mistakes, 
and by the faithful performance of duty and by 
sincere repentance redeem the errors of the past. 
Faithfully perform your duty always, and then 
wait and' worry not. Results will take care of 
themselves. 

"The wonders of the life to be 

We weave from colors all our own ; 

And in the fields of destiny 
We reap as we have sown." 

Young people sometimes become impatient 
because they do not at once see the result of 
their labors. They engage in some work, and 
too soon expect results. It requires years of 
patient work to succeed in any profession. It is 
at such times that they should learn to work 
while they wait. It requires years to accomplish 



A TALK TO GIRLS. 79 

any great work. No one should expect to reap 
at once. Strong character is the growth of years. 
A reputation based upon a noble character is not 
formed in a day. Many of the things we most 
highly prize are the work of a life time. The 
good things in this life come by chance to no one. 
The past we cannot change; the future we cannot 
hasten; the present is ours to be made glorious. 
Then worry not, wait not, but labor on. With 
every present duty well done we cannot fail; but 
some time and somehow, we shall come rejoicing, 
bearing the sheaves with us. 

''Let us then be up and doing, 

With a heart for any fate; 
Still achieving, still pursuing, 

Learn to labor and to wait." 

XVIII. 
A TALK TO GIRLS. 

Much that has been said in these morning 
talks applies more especially to the boys. This 
morning I wish to talk to the girls. I am aware 
that within recent years many new avenues have 
been opened to women. In fact she is free to 
undertake any vocation now entered by men. 
But for all that man is still a creature of ambi- 
tion; and the girl we love is a creature of the 
home. Our girls will find their greatest glory, 
not in hunting for new worlds to conquer, but 



80 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

in conquering those that lie at their feet; not in 
devoting their energies to prove that they can 
do what man can do, but in doing well what he 
cannot do. 

I have never been much impressed by the re- 
cital of woman's wrong. The women whom I 
know seem about as free as I am, and to enjoy 
life about as well. I have never been stirred to 
buckle on my sword and like some knight of 
old go forth and devote my life to freeing women 
from their bondage. While there is sin in the 
world there will always be wrongs to be righted; 
but these are confined to no sex, for pain and 
suffering are common to all ages and conditions 
of humanity. No law can make it impossible 
for man to sin. The demand is not so much to- 
day for new opportunities as it is the ability to 
improve well those which now lie before us. I 
would not debar women from entering any voca- 
tion or occupation for which she is fitted. Let 
her do anything she can do well. I admit that 
some women can sing bass. While the work of 
woman may not be as ambitious as that of man 
it is no less important. It is because that in some 
respects it is more important, that I present to 
you this subject this morning. Talk of the bond- 
age of women ! No queen upon her throne exerts 
a more potential influence than it is possible for 
a woman to exert over her associates. Let fair 
women take a firm stand for purity and right, 
and the world bows at her feet. It is more nearly 



A TALK TO GIRLS. 8 1 

true than it is at first supposed that women can 
control the destinies of men. How many girls 
disregard this divine gift, and like Esau sell their 
glorious birthright for a bitter mess of pottage. 
Girls, study to use well the power you hold in 
your hand. It will make you both useful and 
happy. 

Because a woman's power is so great she 
should be the more careful of what she says and 
does. Let her once lose this power and there 
are none so weak. Many an unfortunate girl 
can trace her downfall to one year's thoughtless, 
aimless drifting. She who would be safe must 
be in earnest and live for some purpose. Girls 
cannot be too careful of their conduct, and their 
associates. Social laws do not apply alike to men 
and women, but there is no distinction in the 
moral code. A girl should not be even indecent. 
There are very many things not sinful that are 
imprudent. It is a good rule to avoid all things 
that look like sin, and always give yourself the 
benefit of the doubt. A wrong step is easily made 
and so hard for a girl to retrace. The torn hand, 
the bleeding heart, the bitter anguish, only the 
suffering know. When among strangers girls 
cannot be too careful of their associates, espe- 
cially of the opposite sex. Associate w T ith no 
young man of whom you know nothing. There 
may be contamination in his touch, and death in 
his influence. When it is your privilege to se- 
cure homage from the best, destroy not your in- 



82 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

fluence by wandering after every ignis fatuus of a 
man that passes through the neighborhood. 

Idleness is a great danger to girls. Each one 
of you should be prepared to do something useful 
in the world, and to be able to earn your own 
living. Idleness and laziness ruin more girls 
than work ever kills. If you have nothing else 
to do raise strawberries, chickens — or do some- 
thing in which you have a special interest. Do 
not spend all your time in reading novels or 
thrumming an old piano as if trying to throw it 
into contortions. To be useful is to be noble, 
and to endeavor to do something to make the 
world better. 

Be true to your sex. Have a kind word and 
a helping hand for the weak and fallen. Let your 
mission in the world be to do, to help. Spurn no 
task, however humble; refuse no duty, however 
exalted. When you cannot lead, follow; when 
you cannot march, cheer. 

"Be good, sweet maid, and let who will be clever; 

Do noble deeds — not dream them all day long, 
And thus make life and death, and all the vast 
forever. 

One glad sweet song/' 

XIX. 

THE REWARDS OF THE STUDENT. 

The question will naturally arise, of what worth 
is all thejrarej^nd study of a student's life? What 



THE REWARDS OF THE STUDENT. 83 

reward is ours for all the days and months of 
sacrifice and mental effort? Knowledge, like 
virtue, brings its own reward. Truth is pleasing 
to the mind, and there is pleasure in the acquisi- 
tion of knowledge. To know is to enjoy. To be 
ignorant is not to live, but simply to exist. 

Someone has compared man to a many bladed 
knife. Education opens the blades. Some per- 
sons can use only one or two blades, while others 
have the use of all. What advantage is there in 
having a twelve bladed knife if only two blades 
can be opened? What matters it what intellec- 
tual ability a man may possess, if it is not culti- 
vated? The development of the intellectual fac- 
ulties is the duty of every one. The divine com- 
mand comes to every one to improve his talents 
and to make the best of himself. There comes 
to every student the pleasure of a duty well done, 
the satisfaction of knowing, and the power that 
knowledge brings. 

There is something noble — yes, divine — in liv- 
ing up to the best that is in one's self. Let a 
young man stand forth beneath the blue skies of 
heaven and recognize his kinship with angels, 
think God's thoughts, and live up to the full de- 
velopment of all his faculties. What can be more 
inspiring than this? What can appeal more 
strongly to all that is best and noblest in human- 
ity? Truth leads, knowledge follows. Those 
who seek find. 

The sacrifices made by the student bring forth 



84 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

fruit in after years. We are now preparing for 
life. These are the years of sowing; soon will 
come the harvest time when we shall realize 
something of the benefit of these weary hours of 
study and labor. How much easier will be all 
the tasks of the future, for these days of prepara- 
tion. The power acquired, and the mental cul- 
ture will bring forth fruit an hundred fold. Now 
we look to the future, but there is no magic in 
the years to come. Nothing will bloom in these 
fields fairer than that which is sown to-day. 
Nothing well done can ever be lost. Every hour 
devoted to faithful study will bear fruit sometime. 
The student can lose nothing. The knowledge 
is his, the power is his, the pleasure is his, and 
the final reward shall be his. 

No man lives for himself alone. He lives for 
the good he can do. These years of study and 
training will give a fullness and completeness to 
your life that you would acquire in no other way. 
Life will mean more to you. The sun will shine 
brighter, and you will see greater possibilities for 
improvement in those around you. You will be 
able to see things in their true relation, and to 
discern that which is of importance. It is indeed 
something to know that there is a place in the 
world for you, and that you have the ability to 
point out to some one the way to a nobler destiny. 
These years of preparation will help you to live, 
and oh, what a privilege to live up to the full en- 
joyment of all your faculties. Yes, it is your high 



THE REWARDS OF THE STUDENT. 85 

privilege to live here full of pleasure and some- 
where, somehow, for millions of years, a higher 
and a better life. 

Be a student always. Make truth your watch- 
word and your guide. Every day will bring its 
reward. As the years come and go you will 
acquire knowledge and wisdom, while every day 
will bring to you some of the enjoyments of life. 
As your talents increase so will your ability to 
use them. There will be nothing useless or low 
in your life. Truth is elevating, and will lead 
you to a higher destiny. It is a ray of light from 
the divine mind. Follow it with your face to the 
light, and you will find the source of all truth, 
all knowledge, and all power. 

In closing this series of talks let me urge you 
not to forget the final reward. As you live here 
so will you live in the brighter hereafter. Live 
up to the best that is within you always. Keep 
alive the little spark of celestial fire called con- 
science, by which you can claim kinship with the 
angels. Look up, not down. It is your high 
privilege to know something of the plans by 
which the world was made. Let the great aim 
of your life be to know the truth. Endeavor to 
shape and mould your life and character in ac- 
cordance with the teachings of the Bible. Do 
this and you will be enabled to erect a structure 
that will stand forth in glory and brightness when 
all else has passed away. It is this alone that will 
abide, and when the cares and anxieties of a busy 



86 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

life are over, you will occupy an eternal tenantry 
in God's boundless universe, and in the bright 
beyond sit at the Master's feet, and at last have 
all mysteries explained. 



WHY WE SHOULD BE THANKFUL. 

Thanksgiving address, read in U. B. church, 
Reliance, Va., November 26, 1896: 

It has been said that man can be placed in no 
condition when he can truly say "This is the 
worst." Thankfulness is a duty. It is a duty we 
owe to ourselves, our neighbors and our God. 
Look for the silver lining. It is there. God's 
"pavilion round about him may be dark waters 
and the thick clouds of the skies." 

It is impossible to name all the things for 
which we should be thankful. Our lives are filled 
so full of good things that we do not appreciate 
them or realize their value. Only what we lose 
we seem to fully prize. 

As a nation we have many things for which to 
be thankful. During the past year, no war has 
wasted our resources, no famine has consumed 
our strength, no pestilence has devastated our 
cities. Peace has been within all our borders. 
This has also been a year of plenty. Never be- 
fore has earth yielded her products so bountifully. 
The barns are filled and long trains pass from 
west to east bearing the abundant surplus to the 



WHY WE SHOULD BE THANKFUL. 87 

markets of the world. Want and suffering need 
not exist. There is food for all. 

Personally we have many things for which to 
be thankful. Health, strength, home, friends, 
hope, ambition and a disposition to make the 
most of life. It is sweet to live. The sunshine 
and the storms, the summer's heat and the win- 
ter's cold all contribute to make the world a pleas- 
ant abode for man. 

Man's mastery over nature each year adds to 
his strength and to his enjoyment. A desire to 
know the truth, a will to master difficulties is 
one of the great blessings of a student's life. To 
think God's thoughts and to read the Epic poem 
of creation that was written upon the rocks and 
sands when "the morning stars sang together" 
is the high incentive held out to him who will 
cause nature to reveal her secrets. Surely God 
has been good to us in giving us a desire for 
truth and the ability to know at least a part of 
the designs of nature and something of the power 
that turns every axle in the great wheel work of 
creation. 

I am thankful that God created us in his own 
image, that he endowed us with a divine essence 
that will live forever, and that by the plan of re- 
demption we can talk with him with the assur- 
ance that he hears us and will grant all requests 
made in accordance with his will. I am thankful 
that there is power in the Christian religion to 
save the world and also that it comes to us per- 



88 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

sonally to uphold us amid the cares and trials of 
every day life. Surely the faith that enabled John, 
exiled on lonely Patmos, to behold the Celestial 
City, that caused Paul, beaten with many stripes, 
bleeding and bound in prison to sing songs, and 
thousands of martyrs in all ages to go exulting to 
the most cruel death will uphold us, if we trust 
implicitly in the sustaining power of the Holy 
Spirit. Take from the world the Cross of Cal- 
vary, the Religion of Jesus, the teachings of the 
Bible, and who then w r ould care to live? Who 
would dare to die? 

I am thankful for a religion of doing and not 
of thinking, that the Divine Master went about 
doing good, and that the principles of Chris- 
tianity may be learned as well from what Christ 
did as from what he taught. It is this that binds 
us together, that enables us to appreciate our 
friends and neighbors, that doubles all our joys 
and divides our sorrows. 

I am thankful that it is an individual religion, 
that it comes to me personally, that the promise 
of the upholding power of the Holy Spirit comes 
to me, and that I have faith to believe that the 
kind Father doeth all things well. 

I am thankful for the home I have, the friends 
I have, the health I have, the hope I have, and 
above all for the faith I have, that though many 
things seem dark and hard to understand, that in 
God's own time all shall be made plain and that 
then I shall clearly know that all things have been 



WHY WE SHOULD BE THANKFUL. 89 

for the best, and that the tangled thread of life 
has been held in God's own hand. 

I am thankful that it has been my privilege to 
know these young people. I am glad that I have 
come in contact with your fresh young lives so 
full of hope and ambition. I am glad that you 
find it sweet to live, that life holds so much in 
store for you. Ambition is no cheat. I am glad 
that you have high hopes of a nobler future, that 
you dream of garlands to be won, of honors to be 
achieved not by the favoritism of fortune, but 
by the power of your own mind, and the strength 
of your own arm. True it is that many bright 
hopes will wither, many cherished ambitions fail, 
but after all, the heroes of the world are those 
who are willing to do and to dare. 

I am glad that you are striving to excel, and I 
rejoice with you at the victories you will win in 
the realms of philosophy, in the fields of science, 
in the arena of politics and in the more trying 
ordeals of the warrior. This should be truly a 
day of thanksgiving with life so full of hope and 
promise. Make every day one of thanksgiving — 
thanks for the victories won, and the strength 
acquired. 

I would not have you careless of the honors 
that come to those who win the battles of life. 
They are worth striving for. But live not for 
these alone. Endeavor each day to shape your 
character in accordance with the teachings of the 
Bible. This will give to your life a fullness and 



90 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

completeness that nothing else will. This is the 
only true success. 

And then when your strength fails, when your 
work is done, when the last battle has been 
fought, the last victory won, you can leave be- 
hind you a record of deeds of kindness, love, and 
gathering up the trophies of a well spent life, 
as offering at the feet of the Prince of Peace, join 
with the innumerable throng which no man can 
number in the glad acclaim : 

"All hail the power of Jesus' name, 

Let angels prostrate fall; 
Bring forth the royal diadem, 

And crown him Lord of all." 



ON THE BURIAL OF MOSES. 

Address before the Y. P. C. U. of the U. B. 
church, Reliance, Va., May 12, 1895: 

It is not my intention to preach a sermon or 
anything of the kind, but the line of thought 
that I shall endeavor to present to you has been 
suggested to my mind by the ninth verse of the 
Book of Jude: "Yet Michael, the archangel, 
when contending with the devil, disputed about 
the body of Moses, durst not bring against him 
a railing accusation, but said, the Lord rebuke 
thee." 

The Book of Jude has caused a great deal of 
trouble to commentators. A great many things 



ON THE BURIAL OF MOSES. 91 

are found in the Book of Jude to which none 
of the various apostles have made any reference 
whatever, and this passage especially has given 
rise to a great many theories. Some commen- 
tators think that it has special reference to the 
burial of Moses on Mount Nebo that the devil 
contended with Michael, that inasmuch as Moses 
led the children of Israel through the wilderness 
that he should receive a royal burial; that his 
burial place should be marked and honored by 
the people whom he had led from slavery and 
bondage and it is thought that the object and 
design of the burial of Moses by Satan was that 
the tomb of Moses might be regarded as a holy 
place, as a Mecca to which they would make 
pilgrimages and thus lead them imperceptibly 
into relic worship and idolatry. Others think 
that the body of Moses has reference to the 
Jewish church inasmuch as the body of Christ 
has reference to the Christian dispensation. 

I do not care to differ with commentators who 
have investigated this subject and spent many 
years of study upon it, but yet it seems to me 
that there could have been no great grounds for 
contention at that time. What concern was it to 
the devil where Moses was buried? Or what 
cause of this disputing, when the work for which 
he had been raised up had been accomplished and 
he had been received into the realms of glory? 
The promise had been given unto Abraham. It 
had been conferred a second time to Isaac, It 



92 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

was confirmed unto Jacob that the land of 
Canaan should be an everlasting habitation to 
the Jewish people, and that they should be God's 
own people. When they had gone down into 
Egypt, and had been 400 years in bondage, it 
seemed that the plan of the Almighty had been 
frustrated. Four hundred years in bondage will 
break the spirit of any people. The condition 
of the Jews was indeed extreme. There was but 
little hope that they would ever again reach the 
promised land, and yet in the dispensation of 
God's providence a man had been brought forth, 
Moses. He stirred up the patriotism and the 
loyalty and the religion of the Jewish people. 
He called to mind the promise that had been 
made to their fathers, and by miraculous power 
he induced Pharaoh to consent that they should 
be released. He led them across the Red Sea. 
He led them forty years in the wilderness. He 
called down manna from the heavens. He 
sweetened the waters of Marah. There was a 
miraculous supply of flesh. By a stroke he called 
forth the water from the rock of Horeb. When 
they begun their wanderings, they were a slavish 
and subdued people, but now instead of being a 
nation of slaves, they are a warlike people, and 
ready to cross over the Jordan and take posses- 
sion of the land of Canaan. And now when 
Moses had endured all this; when he had ac- 
complished the work for which he had been 
called forth, what contention could there have 



ON THE BURIAL OF MOSES. 93 

been with Michael, the archangel, about the dis- 
position of his body? 

When Adam was placed in the Garden, it was 
the great wish of Satan to cause him to sin. 
When the apple was eaten and he had fallen and 
was driven from the Garden, there was glory, 
there was rejoicing in the regions of Satan. God 
had been defeated. His plan for once had been 
frustrated, and when the children had gone into 
Egypt, and were in bondage, the plan of God 
seemed to be frustrated, but at the time of Moses' 
death, when Joshua had been blessed, when 
Moses had lain his hands upon him, and he was 
commissioned to take possession of the prom- 
ised land, Satan then acknowledged defeat. He 
had met God again in battle and was defeated, 
because the very mission for which Moses had 
been brought forth is now accomplished. It is 
true that he sinned in regard to the circumcision 
of his son. It is true that he had sinned when 
he struck the rock Horeb and had failed to sanc- 
tify God in the presence of the children of Israel, 
but all these things had been forgiven. Moses, 
though 120 years old, "his eye not dimmed, nor 
his natural force abated, 7 ' is permitted from 
Mount Nebo in the land of Moab, his eyes mir- 
aculously opened, to look into the land of Ca- 
naan, 160 miles long and sixty miles wide. It 
was a rich land. It was to be their everlasting 
inheritance, and as Moses looked to the land lie 
also with spiritual eye looked beyond to that 



94 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

other Canaan where an eternal tenantry had been 
prepared for him. His work is completed. One 
of the grandest careers ever allotted to man is 
ended, and though many commentators think 
so, I think that the contention for Moses did not 
occur at this time, but rather am I inclined to 
think that the contention in regard to the body of 
Moses occurred in the land of Egypt. 

Moses was miraculously saved from the un- 
just and cruel edict of one of the kings of Egypt. 
He was brought up as the son of the daughter of 
Pharaoh, educated in all the mysteries of Egyp- 
tion science, and in all the intricacies of the 
Egyptian philosophy, in all the ceremonies of the 
Egyptian religion. He is heir to the throne. 
Please bear in mind that Moses was heir to the 
throne of Egypt, and yet when he was come to 
years, forty years of age, the question came to 
Moses, "Shall I remain here in the courts of 
Pharaoh and become the ruler of Egypt and 
thus help my people, or shall I rebel and be true 
to the teachings of my mother, to the traditions 
of the Jewish people, and cast my lot among an 
enslaved people ?" Then is when the contention 
arose. That to my mind is when Michael the 
archangel had a dispute whether Moses should 
remain in the court of Egypt, or go down yonder 
as a slave. Yes, then was the contention. Be- 
cause if Satan can now frustrate the plans of 
God he has won another victory. If Satan can 
induce Moses to remain in the court, if Satan 



ON THE BURIAL OF MOSES. 95 

can induce Moses to remain in the temple, and 
become king of Egypt, he has frustrated the 
plans of God. Another man must be called up 
by miraculous power to lead Israel out of bond- 
age. 

Michael cannot bring a railing accusation 
against him, but says "the Lord rebuke thee." 
And I believe that when these great hours of 
decision come that the angels help and assist us 
as they did Moses. I believe the angels helped 
Moses to form that decision, that the angels 
helped Moses to throw aside all of the honors of 
the Egyptian court, that came to him who was 
sole heir to the throne, that he might serve and 
save his people. Look for a moment. Egypt 
was one of the most powerful nations of the 
earth. Her caravans crossed the desert bringing 
the riches of the African coast to her store 
houses. The maritime nations bordering on the 
Mediterranean deposited their profits in the ware- 
houses of Egypt, and across the Arabian desert 
came the riches of the Orient to adorn and add 
to the luxuries of the kings of Egypt. All of 
these things did he leave. He was acquainted 
with all of the arts and sciences. He was 
brought in contact with all of the leading men 
and honor of his own land and all lands, and yet 
all of these things Moses casts aside and becomes 
a slave. 

When Christ was tempted, it is said that Satan 
offered him all of the nations of the earth if he 



96 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

would fall down and worship him. Satan is a 
liar. He didn't have all of these things to offer 
Christ, but here is Moses with all of these things 
in his grasp, all of these things are his if he will 
only acknowledge himself as the son of the 
daughter of Pharaoh. And what does he get in 
return for refusing? Forty years in exile, a 
lonely shepherd, tending the flocks of his father- 
in-law in the land of Midian. Forty years 
abused and persecuted, as he led his people from 
the land of Egypt to the borders of Canaan. A 
wonderful choice. A remarkable choice. And 
that choice was made not by human power 
alone, but by divine power. "By faith when 
Moses was come to years refused to be called the 
son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to 
suffer affliction with the people of God than to 
enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season, esteeming 
the reproach of Christ greater riches than the 
treaures in Egypt, for he had respect unto the 
recompense of the reward/' 

Now let us see what application there is to this 
lesson. Inasmuch as there was a contention for 
the life, for the body, for the services of Moses 
in the land of Egypt, I infer that there is a like 
contention for the life and the services of every 
young man and every young woman to-day. 

I don't care to discuss the existence of a per- 
sonal devil who, "as a roaring lion walketh about 
seeking whom he may devour." 

We all realize that there are before us, that there 



ON THE BURIAL OF MOSES. 97 

are in the world two contending forces ; that there 
is a continual struggle between right and wrong, 
between honesty and expediency, between virtue 
and vice. We realize that there are within us two 
contending passions, two contending natures, 
two contending forces, and when we would do 
good evil is ever present with us. I tell you, 
my young friends, that Michael, the archangel, 
and the devil are contending which shall receive 
your services. As they contended concerning the 
body of Moses so they are contending for you. 
Man is a free moral agent. Before him is placed 
good and evil, life and death. It is in his power 
to choose which he will take, and while he is free 
to choose, while there are temptations to lead 
him into evil, yet angels ever guard and surround 
him in these critical moments. When a young 
man stands at the parting of the way, when he 
hesitates whether to turn to the right and choose 
life, or turn to the left and take death, angels 
stretch forth their hands and lead him into the 
way of life. But while angels plead a crucified 
saviour interceding, yet it is possible for a young 
man to turn his back upon the light, turn traitor 
to his better nature, crush out all of the noblest 
instincts of the human soul, and in spite of a 
mother's prayers and a mother's tears go reeling, 
staggering, stumbling into the darkness of eter- 
nal night. 

Why should a young man hesitate in making 
this choice? What is there before him between 



98 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

which to choose? Why should he hesitate 
whether to enlist under the black banner of Satan 
or under the white banner and red cross of Prince 
Immanuel ? 

There is no discharge in that war. The con- 
test is waged continually. Satan can offer many 
of the pleasures of sin — all of the pleasures of 
sin, — a pleasant life, a gay life it may be, but in 
the end death. Christ cannot offer to the young 
man a life of ease, but a life of continual war- 
fare, of continual strife, and it may be of con- 
tinual persecution, life and not death. 

All the enjoyments of life did I say are found 
beneath the black banner of Satan? No, there 
are no legitimate pleasures that a young man 
cannot enjoy in the Christian life. There are 
no legitimate pleasures that Satan can offer that 
a young man cannot enjoy in the Christian life. 
Satan has nothing to offer a young man in this 
contention except misery and death. 

Every sin, young man, young woman, has 
within it the seeds of death. Every physical 
pleasure that is contrary to the laws of nature 
has within it the seeds of physical and moral 
death. Every hour of enjoyment that is secured 
contrary to the teachings of the Word of God 
has within it the seeds of moral and too often 
physical death. 

Christ can offer to a young man not a life of 
ease, not a life of peace, not a life of contentment, 
but a life of strife, a life of contention for the 



ON THE BURIAL OF MOSES. 99 

right, and he can offer him all of the physical, 
moral, intellectual pleasures of life that have 
within them the seeds of life and not of death. 

I am aware that there is a misconception in 
regard to the Christian life. I am aware that 
young men and women sometimes hesitate in 
this great contention between good and evil, and 
look upon Christian life too often as a life of mis- 
ery; and not particularly of misery, but a life of 
sadness and of sorrow. It is not the case. 
There is no reason why a young man should be 
sad when he is enlisted in the army of Prince 
Immanuel. It is not a life of ease of course, and 
I would have you understand that it is a con- 
tinual warfare, a continual battle. The young 
man in enlisting for the war must expect to meet 
temptation. He must expect to encounter evil 
passions, and unless he is brave and courageous, 
he will sink in the struggle and Satan will gain 
the victory. I don't believe that it is impossible 
for a young man, or for any one when he is 
choosing the right to fall away and be seduced 
by Satan. We find that Moses had fallen away 
and committed sin, and a young man must be 
constantly and continually on his guard. 

I cannot tell you when this struggle takes 
place, but, young man, young woman, there is 
an hour in your life when there is a struggle for 
mastery; when this contention takes place and 
you decide whether you will give your life, your 
service, your body to Michael, the archangel, to 

LofC. 



100 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

Christ or the devil, that hour comes. The 
decision is made, and how it is made determines 
not only your welfare in the world, but also your 
everlasting and eternal welfare. 

To-day the world calls for Christian young 
men. Christian young men to carry the com- 
merce of the world; Christian young men to do 
the banking of the world; there is a demand for 
bright, honest men and women in every vocation 
of life. 

I know that we sometimes are discouraged. 
I know that there are times when we think that 
the world is against us. I know that there are 
times when we think that we cannot do anything, 
and that we are of no account in the struggle, in 
the battle of life, but you are not fighting for me, 
I am not fighting for you. The greatest battles 
that any man ever fights he fights alone. The 
disciples could go with Christ into the Garden 
of Gethsemane, but he went alone and prayed 
that agonizing prayer until he sweat great drops 
of blood. Alone he met the great temptation. 
Alone he passed that agonizing hour, and so 
while we stretch forth the hand of help and 
friends stand around and encourage you, yet the 
great battle of your life you fight alone. You 
meet the tempter unaided, unassisted. By di- 
vine power you conquer, or you turn your back 
upon the right and march under the black flag 
to death. Please remember that you hold in 
your hands your decision, and in your own hand 



ON THE BURIAL OF MOSES. IOI 

is your destiny; and you determine your own 
path, but that angels are always ready to lend a 
helping hand to assist you, and they stand 
around to bear you up, and they encourage you. 

Oh, my young friends, life is a great possibil- 
ity! As I remarked to a young man in the full 
bloom of health and vigor of manhood, that for 
a young man it was indeed sweet to live, and as 
you look out upon the world there are before you 
great possibilities. But I would have you real- 
ize that these possibilities are yours only when 
you are true to the principles of right, only when 
you fight under the banner of Prince Immanuel. 
Turn your back upon Christ, turn your back 
upon the light of Calvary, and your life is black- 
ness and darkness in the end. 

Gladstone says that it has been his pleasure to 
be associated in the past forty years with sixty 
of the master minds of England, and that all but 
five were believers in the Christian religion. 
When you march in the army of Christ, you are 
marching with the greatest and the noblest and 
the best men of the present age. I like to think 
of Martin Luther. He had a struggle with the 
devil. You go down there in Germany and in 
the old monk's cell you will still see the mark 
on the wall left by the ink bottle that he threw 
at the devil, when he came to seduce him, and 
may we not believe that Martin Luther, when 
he threw the bottle, won the victory? 

Do you admire courage? Do you admire 



102 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

heroism? You will find it nowhere outside of 
the Christian religion. See Martin Luther as he 
goes dow r n to the Diet of Worms. Women and 
children stand with outstretched arms, saying: 
"Oh, Luther, forsake us not, stand by us!" 
What does he do? He goes down there. Whom 
does he meet there? Why, sir, there he meets 
the representatives of the most cruel, relentless, 
tyrannical ecclesiastical power that ever enslaved 
an ignorant and superstitious people. He meets 
in that court the representatives of the mightiest 
nation that ever stretched the iron scepter over 
the continent of Europe. Luther had condemned 
the practices of the Roman church. He was 
compelled to retract, but he would not retract. 
See him stand there before that little table with 
his hand upon the Eternal truth; and he stood 
there, a man unawed and undaunted, not waver- 
ing one iota. What matters it to him how dark 
the clouds of persecution might hang over him, 
and how high the waves of oppression might roll, 
he realized that one with God is always a major- 
ity. He realized that they might kill him as they 
did his friend Zwingli a little later, because the 
ecclesiastical power backed by the civil power 
dominated the council. "I cannot retract. It is 
true. I cannot retract." He did not retract, and 
what was the result? He removed the seals from 
the Holy Bible. He unlocked the shackles from 
the human mind. And from the day that Mar- 
tin Luther nailed his ninety-five theses to the door 



ON THE BURIAL OF MOSES. IO3 

of the old church at Wittenberg, a brave man 
was dared to think. Oh, sir, when Martin Luther 
spoke, he spoke for you; he spoke for me; he 
spoke for millions yet unborn ! 

"They are slaves who fear to speak 
For the fallen and the weak ; 
They are slaves who will not choose 
Hatred, scoffing and abuse; 
Rather than in silence shrink 
From the truth they needs but think; 
They are slaves who dare not be 
In the right with two or three." 

I tell you, sir, that the devotion to right makes 
men. It makes men brave. Young man, stand 
with your feet upon the eternal Rock of Ages, 
and build your campfires upon the rugged cliffs 
of Calvary, and you are safe. You need fear 
no oppression because one with God is always 
in the majority. You fight with men like Luther, 
men like Wycliffe, men like Knox. Oh, think of 
that man Knox! He was the only man that ever 
dared to preach the truth to the rulers of Scot- 
land, and he made Scotland a people, noted for 
their industry, and their virtue, and every good 
quality. John Knox stood alone. One brave 
man revolutionized and changed the character 
of a whole people. 

Have you heard the story of the gamin of 
Paris? When Napoleon was at the height of his 
glory and was leading a victorious army to the 
conquest of Europe, Desaix, his boy commander, 



104 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

had charge of a division, and in his service was 
a street gamin whom he had found in the streets 
of Paris. He was a little gamin, and one in 
whom Desaix had taken an interest and had 
made a drummer boy in his division. He was 
with the army in Egypt. He was with the 
army again at the battle of Marengo. The 
French reinforcements failed to arrive in time, 
and at about four o'clock in the afternoon the 
French were apparently defeated. Napoleon, 
dropping back from the lines to where the young 
commander was standing, asked him what 
should be done. "General," said Desaix, point- 
ing to the sun, "there is yet time to win a vic- 
tory." Napoleon said: "No, sir, we are de- 
feated," and to the gamin, "Gamin, beat a re- 
treat." Said the gamin: "I don't know how. 
Desaix never taught me that." A second time 
he was ordered to beat a retreat, but replied: 
"Oh, sir, I don't know how, but I can beat a 
charge. Oh, sir, let me beat a charge. I beat 
the charge at the battle of the Pyramids; I beat 
it again at the Bridge of Lodi. Oh, sir, let me 
beat the charge." Napoleon said: "What 
shall we do?" Said Desaix: "There is time to 
win a victory. Gamin, beat the charge." And 
the little child beat with such ardor on the battle 
field that the very dead seemed to spring up, and 
with the gamin at the head they beat down the 
first rank, and the second, and the third, and the 
next, and then there was confusion on Marengo, 



ON THE BURIAL OF MOSES, IO5 

and a glorious victory had been won. The 
French army was victorious. An historian 
speaks of the hundred days in Italy, the conquest 
of Italy, the defeat of the Austrians, but not one 
word about Desaix and the street gamin who 
won the victory. He applauds the mighty 
achievements, the tenacity of Napoleon. And 
so, my friends, it may not be you will be found 
an honor man to receive the honor in this mighty 
struggle between right and wrong, good and 
evil, but we can beat the charge. Or if we can- 
not beat the charge, we can be one of those who 
follow in the ranks, and fall if it need be with 
our face to the foe, and our eyes upon the 
cross. 

But I must bring these rambling remarks to 
a close. We are in the midst of this struggle. 
It would be very pleasant probably if we could 
just stop and get out of it, but we cannot do that, 
we must fight. We must fight either yonder un- 
der the white banner, or yonder under the black 
banner. And if we look at this matter only in 
regard to this life, it pays to do right. It pays 
to be a Christian. But I cannot solve the great 
mysteries of life, if death ends all. Take the life 
of Moses, my friends. What would he have 
made if death ends all? If there are any chains 
in the infernal regions to bar and lock the gate- 
ways of the tomb, then Moses made a great mis- 
take. If Moses gave up all of the luxuries and 
pleasures of the Egyptian court to spend forty 



106 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

years in exile, and forty years as leader of a re- 
bellious people, I say if that was the end of Moses 
that he made a mistake. 

There are correlations of physical forces. 
There are correlations of spiritual forces to prove 
that death does not end all. We cannot enter 
into a discussion of that subject, but death does 
not end all, and there is no philosophy that can 
explain the matter. Come, ye agnostic, and tell 
me what did Moses gain. Nothing. Nothing. 
He had nothing to gain if death ended all. 
Come, ye Christian philosopher, and tell me what 
did Moses gain, and he says a tenantry in God's 
boundless universe. To-night as Moses looks 
down through the broken archways of the cen- 
turies, and sees the many mighty nations that 
have risen, flourished and passed away, and on 
the other hand the Law which he received from 
God on Mount Sinai, the corner-stone of every 
enlightened and civilized nation, he realizes in- 
deed that truth is mighty and will prevail, and 
in the end that through countless centuries right 
shall triumph and evil go down. We shall live. 
Yes, millions of years somewhere and somehow. 
What you say and do to-day will leave an im- 
press upon your character "when stars and suns 
have set to rise no more." 

Why, sir, suppose that in 120 years a man 
might build up a nation and lead a people as 
Moses did, a 120 years is indeed a short span in 
the history of the world and the countless years 



ON THE BURIAL OF MOSES. IO7 

of eternity. And if I believed that death ended 
all, and there was no light to pierce the darkness 
of the tomb, I wouldn't care whether I lived or 
not. I don't care to discuss the question in re- 
gard to the nature of the future life, but let us 
ask Paul, that mighty, Christian apostle, what 
did he receive. "Of the Jews, five times received 
I forty stripes save one. Thrice was I beaten 
with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered 
shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the 
deep; in journeyings often, in perils of water, in 
perils of robbers, in perils of mine own country- 
men, in perils of the heathen, in perils in the city, 
in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, 
in perils among false brethren; in weariness 
and painfullness, in watchings often, in hunger 
and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and naked- 
ness." That is what he received. We have 
life; we may have a life of suffering and anxiety, 
and yet he says this when he writes to the 
brethren at Corinth, and now from the prison at 
Rome he writes to Timothy: "I have fought 
a good fight, I have finished my course; I have 
kept the faith; henceforth there is laid up for me 
a crown of righteousness w T hich the Lord, the 
righteous judge shall give me at that day." It 
is true that Xero could silence his tongue of fire, 
but the mighty heart of the great apostle beats 
sacred music in a thousand Christian pulpits. 
Ask the martyrs from Stephen to the Armenian 
peasants who recently perished; ask those who 



108 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

endured the agonies and cruelties and persecu- 
tions at the stake, and all of the agonies and suf- 
ferings inflicted by the Spanish inquisition: 
"Does it pay to live the life of a Christian?" Let 
us ask the beloved apostle what he thinks about 
the matter. What vision opened up before him as 
he sat alone on the isle of Patmos? "What are 
these which are arrayed in white robes and 
whence came they?" Listen to his answer. 

"These are they which came out of great tribu- 
lation, and have washed their robes and have 
made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 
Therefore are they before the throne of God, 
serving Him day and night in His temple, and 
He that sitteth upon the throne shall dwell among 
them, and they shall hunger no more, neither 
thirst any more, neither shall the sun light on 
them, nor any heat; and there shall be no more 
death, neither sorrowing nor crying; neither 
shall there be any more pain, for the Lamb which 
is in the midst of the throne shall feed them and 
shall lead them unto living fountains of water, 
and God shall wipe away all tears from their 
eyes." 

So there is a future choice placed before us 
to-night. God offers you life and death to-night. 
He places before you good and evil, and it is in 
your power to choose life and live, or to choose a 
life of pleasure and in the end death. 

May God in His infinite mercy help each one 
of you to decide for the right, each one of you to 



OX THE BURIAL OF MOSES. IO9 

cast your lot for the truth, and to fight nobly, 
valiantly and bravely the battle until you fall vic- 
torious with your eyes upon Calvary, and be 
received into the regions of eternal glory. 



ADDRESSES DELIVERED 

BEFORE THE GRADUATING CLASSES OF THE 

SHENANDOAH NORMAL COLLEGE. 

CLASS OF '84. 

We have now reached the first turning point 
in the history of the Shenandoah Normal College. 
A year, with all its joys and sorrows, lessons 
learned and recited, now lies behind us. The 
scroll is rolled together, and we record finis at 
the close of the first year's work. To me it has 
been a year in which pleasure and disappointment 
were strangely mingled — full of strange scenes 
and many pleasing incidents. To you I trust it 
has not been unpleasant. Associations have been 
formed that will exert an influence as lasting as 
time itself. The work done here has left an im- 
pression upon your minds and character that 
cannot be effaced. 

You are not the same persons you were when 
you entered school one year ago. You are 
stronger in every way, and now grasp new truths, 
that then you could not comprehend. Life is 
more real to you than ever before. Though the 
past may appear as beautiful and enchanting as 
the music of a dream; though the future, gilded 
by the sunlight of hope, may shine with radiant 

in 



112 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

splendor, yet you realize that "life is real, life is 
earnest/' and unless you perform well the duties 
of the present, and add something to the enjoy- 
ment of others, it would have been far better for 
humanity had you never lived. 

You have completed the Teachers' Course of 
study prescribed. We confer upon you these 
diplomas as an appreciation of your faithfulness 
as students and as an evidence of the work you 
have accomplished. This is not the end, but only 
the beginning of life's work. The question is not, 
What have you done? but, What can you do? 
Many things remain unknown. Each year new 
truths are being revealed. Science delves deeper 
into the mysteries of earth, astronomy pierces far- 
ther into the regions of space, the intellect of man 
soars with stronger wings, and yet the great mys- 
tery of the, unknown is still unsolved. The world 
is waiting to receive her master. Many avenues 
to success are open to the young person of energy 
and ambition. No earnest effort put forth in a 
good cause can ever be lost. 

No person will ever be any better than his 
ideal. Every act of our lives is but carving "our 
bright ideal in the marble real." Some may copy 
after the warrior who leads his conquering 
legions to battle and to victory; some may imitate 
the daring of the statesman who boldly defends 
the right when demagogues remain silent; others 
may take for their hero the man of letters, who 
writes as if by the inspiration of heaven, or the 



CLASS OF '84. 113 

scientist, who reveals the mystery of life and na- 
ture. All these ideals are, perhaps, ennobling; 
but there is a higher ideal — the ideal of true man- 
hood, as portrayed by the life of that meek and 
lowly personage, who "spoke as never man 
spake." No young person can have a higher am- 
bition in life than to be a true man or a true 
woman. There is something in such a character 
that calls forth the admiration of all. It is the 
foundation of every successful career in life. 
Without it we can accomplish nothing that will 
be lasting. He who strives to be a man cannot 
make a failure of life. To be a true man as the 
world goes, is to be one man among ten thou- 
sand. Every vocation in life is waiting to receive 
men and women to fill up the ranks. 

Great men are those who have convictions; 
men who believe they are in the right, and have 
an abiding faith that in the end truth must tri- 
umph over error. If you would succeed in life, 
you must be sincere. Engage in no work in 
which you are not interested. The heart must 
feel the truth of the sentiment before the thought 
can move the feelings of others. No man has 
ever yet- been truly great who did not believe he 
was in the right. Truth gives courage to the 
heart, and nerves the arm to strike a fiercer blow. 
Falsehood shrinks in time of trial, and cowardly 
hides among her worshippers. 

True greatness consists in doing well the work 
that is placed before us. Many of our names 



114 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

will remain unrecorded, and the story of our 
deeds will never grace the pages of our country's 
history. It is the common lot of most men to 
live a lowly life, to die, and be forgotten. Some 
of the bravest deeds have been performed by 
nameless heroes. But a true life is none the less 
glorious because its deeds are unrecorded. He 
who does the best his circumstances will permit 
acts nobly. 

"What does it matter, when life has passed, 
And the record is made of evil and good ; 
What does it matter, when Death's shadow is 
cast, 
If some one can say, 'she hath done what she 
could/ " 

As you now leave these sacred halls, hallowed 
by the memories of the past, by one year's faith- 
ful w r ork in the school room, with all its trials, 
cherished hopes and blighted ambitions, and go 
forth to battle with the stern realities of life, be 
true to yourself, carry with you the elements of 
true manhood and womanhood, and your life will 
be successful. Your alma mater will watch your 
future course in life as a fond and loving mother. 
She will rejoice with you in prosperity, and grieve 
*over each misstep you make, as only a mother 
grieves over the waywardness of a loving son or 
daughter. 

It is, indeed, sweet to live, but life is something 
more than mere existence. All is not pleasure. 



CLASS OF '85. 115 

The beautiful visions of childhood soon fade 
away. No one has ever yet made a success of 
life but what some hearts have ached, some hands 
have bled. 

There are many bright stars in the northern 
skies, but there is but one Polar Star, by which 
the mariner steers his vessel safely across the 
boisterous sea. There are many courses marked 
out through the wilderness of life, but there is 
only one straight and narrow path that leads to 
success and happiness. Take your reckoning 
by the bright star, Rectitude, be true to the prin- 
ciples of right, and you will pass safely over all 
the difficulties in the pathway of life. Be true to 
thyself. Think wisely, act nobly, do the best thy 
circumstances will permit, and thy life will be 
glorious, thy death triumphant. 

CLASS OF '85. 

Again Commencement Day has come. An- 
other year has gone. The lessons have been 
recited, the work is ended, but the result is not 
yet revealed. You know not how great an in- 
fluence this one year's work may have upon your 
destiny. The impressions you have received can 
not be forgotten. They will cling to you while 
life shall last, either inspiring to nobler deeds in 
the future, or dragging you down to shame and 
dishonor. From the Shenandoah Normal Col- 
lege many of you will reckon your course in life. 
It will be the golden milestone from which all 



Il6 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

distances are measured. Here we trust you have 
received an inspiration, a spirit of work that will 
enable you to surmount all difficulties and finally 
crown your life with success. 

You have completed the course of study pre- 
scribed in this institution. We confer upon you 
these diplomas, not as an evidence that all the 
studies have been completed, but as an evidence 
that you have been faithful students. We have 
taught you but few things. Life is so short, and 
so great are the wonders of science and the mys- 
teries of nature that we have time to master but 
few things. Each year the intellect of man makes 
new conquests, hypotheses are proven true or 
false, but yet the region of the unknown sur- 
rounds us on all sides. 

This is no time for rest. You pass from school 
life upon the duties of life's school. What you 
have accomplished should be but a stepping stone 
to something nobler and grander in the future. 
Each year should add something to your store 
of knowledge. All nature will administer to your 
wants if you will but bravely perform each pres- 
ent duty. 

Think not that life is only a summer dream. 
Life is real. The world has no sympathy. It ex- 
pects every man to do his duty. Fortune favors 
only the brave. He who would win success must 
work— not idly fold his hands. A coward heart 
will ne'er perform a noble deed, and such should 
not expect a hero's just reward. The hand of 



CLASS OF '85. 117 

Fate can never bind to earth the soul of him who 
seeks to rise. Resolve and work — work bravely 
for the right. You need not live a useless life. 
There is some work for you to do. There are 
no blanks in the great lottery of life. There is 
no chance. You are to determine your own fu- 
ture. Time, life and opportunities are given to 
all out of which they shape their own characters. 
All things are ruled by law. Can't is a coward, 
and can is a hero. If you fail, if you can add 
nothing to the happiness of others, it is because 
you are not willing to pay the price of success. 
Nothing worthy can ever be accomplished with- 
out great labor. Idleness produces nothing but 
misery and want. Genius is nothing more than 
the ability to labor earnestly. The world's bene- 
factors have all been great workers. They have 
opened the way, removed the difficulties, and 
others have only followed. If you have not 
learned the sweet pleasures of a life of constant 
toil, earnest, devoted work, you have missed the 
most important part of a Normal training. Labor 
is king. They are noblest who do most for hu- 
manity. 

There will always be some to shirk their duties. 
They wait while others work. One-sixth of the 
people conduct the business of the world. The 
others do but little. Envy not the lot of the five- 
sixths, but rather aim to be one of the few who 
coin the passing moments into jewels of thought 
or ornaments of character. Each day should 



Il8 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

make you stronger. Perhaps you may often be 
required to do more than your duty, but do it 
bravely. It is well to be able to give more to the 
world than you ask of others. 

Difficulties are in the way. I would not de- 
ceive you. Life is a struggle. A constant battle 
is being waged between right and wrong, honesty 
and expediency. Only the valiant can succeed. 
Brave hearts and willing hands can surmount 
many obstacles. He who hesitates will surely 
fail. Stand for the right. Do not yield. Know 
not defeat in a just cause. Truth and right will 
triumph. 

Man is never satisfied. In every human breast 
there are longings for something still unknown. 
He who has no aspirations for something nobler 
in the future is but little better than the beasts of 
the field that perish. Each new conquest in the 
realms of science brings to view other mysteries 
that before were unseen. The finite ever reaches 
out toward the infinite. It matters not how wise 
or profound you may become, there will still be 
loftier heights beyond. Ever onward, ever up- 
ward, never resting, strive after all that is true 
and noble in character. Let the past be but the 
means of acquiring something better in the fu- 
ture. 

Have some aim in life. Live for some purpose. 
A life without an aim can never be successful. 
Let your first ambition be to be true men and 
women. Waste no time in idle dreaming. You 



CLASS OF '85. 119 

can be what you wish to be. Every day ought 
to bring you nearer your ideal. It matters not 
in what vocation you may be engaged, if you 
are true to yourself and the principles of right, 
your life will not be in vain. Though unknown 
and unhonored, your influence for good will live 
forever. However humble your lot may be, how- 
ever exacting the work in which you are engaged, 
bear in mind that the man should honor the call- 
ing and not the calling the man. 

As you now go out from the Normal our best 
wishes go with you. In whatever work you may 
engage we hope to hear of your success. Many 
difficult lessons have been recited, and many 
pleasant hours have been spent in the class room. 
But all is now ended. Some of you will be with 
us no longer. But we trust and believe that, as 
you now depart from this hall, you go from us 
stronger and better men and women than you 
were a year ago. Amid the busy cares of life, 
may memory revert to these sacred scenes with 
pleasure and not with sorrow. You now engage 
upon the duties of life. We do not fear that you 
will make a failure, but rely not upon your own 
strength. Temptation will meet you at unex- 
pected moments. The bravest have fallen, and 
many strong men have been conquered. In the 
darkest hours, when vice seems to triumph over 
virtue and wrong to usurp the throne of right, 
despair not. Keep close to Him who said, "Let 
not your heart be troubled," and all will be well. 



120 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

CLASS OF '86. 

Upon occasions of this kind but little need be 
said. The year's work is now ended. If we have 
been unfaithful, nothing that can be said at this 
time can atone for neglected duties. If in our 
work we have not impressed upon your minds 
the true principles of life, those impressions can 
never be made. Words, however eloquently ut- 
tered, thoughts, however beautifully expressed, 
can not be compared with deeds. 

What is said at this time may soon be for- 
gotten, but the silent influence of our associations 
will cling to you forever. There is a mystic bond 
that unites teachers and students. Standing here 
at the close of another year, amid scenes that re- 
call the incidents of the past, we realize how weak 
indeed is language. It is ever impossible to ex- 
press the inmost feelings of the human soul. 

The noblest thoughts remain unsaid; 
The sweetest notes are never sung; 
The deepest grief reveals no tears, 
And purest love calls forth no vows. 

In school life light and shadow are strangely 
mingled. Many difficulties have been encoun- 
tered, many obstacles overcome, and yet we have 
but tasted of the intoxicating waters of knowl- 
edge; we have plucked but a few flowers from the 
field of science, while all around us are the mys- 
teries of earth, air and heaven. 



CLASS OF '86. 121 

These diplomas are not an evidence that you 
have mastered all things, but that you have been 
faithful students. We cannot in a few months 
comprehend all the beauties of a proposition that 
required many years of faithful study for its 
demonstration. There are many difficulties and 
disappointments in life. Could we cover up the 
rugged places in your pathway and strew your 
course in life with flowers, it would not be kind- 
ness for us to do so. Man is like the diamond. 
The precious gem seems only an ordinary pebble 
when picked up on the seashore, but when cut 
and polished it is the most resplendent of all the 
jewels that deck the coronet of an oriental 
princess. So it is with man. The spark of 
divinity in the human soul needs temptations, 
trials and persecutions to develop the power that 
lies concealed. These difficulties, though hard 
and cruel they may seem, may make of that little 
spark of divinity one of the brightest angels of 
heaven. When your work in life seems greater 
than you can bear, and difficulties surround you 
on all sides, thank God and take courage. 

Life is indeed sweet. To our childhood the. 
Future revealed naught but pleasure. Plans were 
then formed, and we waited for the realization of 
our hopes. The beautiful structures we built in air 
were grander by far than the mansions of Italy's 
sunny plains; more magnificent than the castles 
that look down upon the classic Rhine. But, 
alas! how soon the cruel hand of Fate shattered 



122 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

the foundation, and the beautiful structure, with 
sky-reaching towers, fell to the earth, and we 
awoke from the sw^eet dream of childhood, real- 
izing that life is real, and that those who would 
be strong must suffer and endure. 

So it will be in life. Many of our most cher- 
ished plans will fail, and bright anticipations will 
fade away as the air castles of childhood. But 
never be discouraged. The disappointments and 
blighted hopes of life ought only to make you 
stronger. 

As you now go forth in life we shall not forget 
you. Pleasant memories will ever be associated 
with the past year's work. But we dwell not 
upon the Past, but look to the Future. 

It matters not in what work in life you may 
engage, it matters not how disinterested your 
motive, there will always be some to find fault, 
and to condemn your actions. But in the darkest 
hour stand firmly upon virtue, truth and right, 
where the tongue of calumny cannot reach you, 
where the venom of slander cannot injure you; 
and with faith in God and confidence in your own 
powers, may each one of you live a true and noble 
life. 

CLASS OF '87. 

Another milestone has been reached. We stop 
for a moment to review the past and catch a 
glimpse of the future. Though the record has 
been written and must remain forever unchanged, 
yet from the mistakes and achievements of the 



CLASS OF '87. 123 

past we may receive an inspiration to nobler 
deeds in the future. The many hours of study, 
the lessons learned and recited during the past 
year cannot soon be forgotten. The year's work 
has been one of preparation. You have been 
sowing seed and will reap the fruit of your labor 
in all time to come. During the past year you 
have received impressions that will cling to you 
forever. In the hour of your most brilliant 
achievements and in the day of disappointments 
you will recall most vividly the incidents of the 
past year. With these memories may there al- 
ways come renewed strength and vigor. 

Your work is not ended. It has only begun. 
There is no rest in life. Action is inscribed upon 
all the work of Nature. Man ever strives after 
the unknown, and finds rest only in the grave. 
You have some ambition in life, some long 
wished-for ideal towards which you are striving. 
Let that ambition be a noble one, and by a uni- 
versal law of nature, each day you will become 
stronger. 

No man can be a nonentity. He must either be 
a blessing or a curse to his associates. Each one 
determines for himself what station in life he 
shall occupy. Riches and poverty, virtue and 
vice, life and death are placed before all from 
which each may make, to a great extent, his own 
selection. But I w r ould not deceive you. Youth 
is buoyant. The iris-hued bow of Hope spans 
and overreaches every future scene. Standing 



124 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

here at this time, life seems as sweet and enchant- 
ing as the music of a dream. But it is not always 
so. Life is a constant struggle. He who would 
nobly live must never fear to bravely die. 

Expect but little from the world. Those who 
do most for humanity receive no thanks. The 
people have ever killed their benefactors. Only 
by the glare of the burning stake can be read the 
history of the world's progress. The groans of 
expiring martyrs have ever been the prophecy of 
a nobler future. Public opinion can never be a 
safe rule for action. Never sacrifice principle for 
the unthinking applause of the moment. The 
same people who shouted, "Hosanna, Hosanna 
in the highest, Blessed is the King that cometh 
in the name of the Lord," in a few days cried out, 
"Crucify him, crucify him." 

Truth alone is immortal. When duty leads 
you to denounce a popular evil and to uphold an 
unpopular truth, may you never falter. One man 
standing upon the principles of truth is more 
powerful than the combined armies of all the 
nations of earth. Empires may crumble to dust; 
Governments may perish, but the principles of 
truth will survive amid the wreck of nations. The 
echo of Luther's hammer is still heard as he nails 
his ninety-five theses against the old church door 
in Wittenburg. When in the right a man may 
well laugh at opposition. God and Time will al- 
ways vindicate the truth. 

The age of persecution has not yet ended. The 



CLASS OF '87. 125 

day of martyrdom is still here. The right of free 
thought, free speech and a free press, means to 
many persons, simply the right to think, to speak 
and to write as they do. Legislative assemblies 
even, in our own fair land have passed resolu- 
tions offering a reward for the head of an Ameri- 
can citizen whose sole crime was his convictions 
and the unanswerable manner in which he pro- 
claimed what he believed to be true. 

There are times when it will require courage to 
stand by the truth, but he who fears to express 
his honest convictions and turns traitor to the 
truth that lies nearest his own heart, is unworthy 
the name of man. Better to die a martyr to what 
you believe to be right than to purchase long 
life and riches by the sacrifice of principle. While 
fearless in the advocacy of w T hat you believe to 
be right, respect the opinion of others. Human- 
ity is liable to err. The judgment of no man is 
infallible. The foulest crimes have been com- 
mitted in the name of Liberty, and the most re- 
lentless persecution carried on to the glory of 
Him who first taught the great lesson of charity. 

There is a demand for men, men who think 
and dare to act. Time and again has society been 
agitated by the conflict between labor and capital ; 
the red flag of communism has been unfurled in 
many of our leading cities; the corruption of 
money in elections is no longer denied, but jus- 
tified by the most fallacious reasoning. 

These are but few of the evils that demand the 



126 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

attention of the American citizen. Dynamite and 
nihilism has shaken the strongest governments 
in Europe. Our free institutions must be vindi- 
cated before the world. Wise, cool-headed, con- 
servative men are needed in every vocation. 
How else can these evils be averted? Public 
opinion must be moulded, the public conscience 
must be educated, and this work must be done 
by the graduates of our colleges and universities. 
There is a place and a work for you. Fold not 
your hands, but go forward and be something and 
do something to make the world better. 

The year's work is ended. As you now go out 
in life, our best wishes go with you. These 
diplomas will soon fade and be cherished only as 
fond mementoes of the past. They are only an 
evidence that you have done some faithful work. 
Amid the busy scenes of life you must be your 
own diploma. We believe that you will not falter 
nor fail when the most is expected of you. In the 
battle of life depend not upon the empty honors 
of a degree nor upon the proud lineage of a name. 
By your own exertions you must carve out your 
destiny and by untiring energy pluck bright suc- 
cess from the hands of Fate. 

CLASS OF '88. 

Advice given on occasions of this kind is not 
long remembered, and does but little good. Lit- 
erature is filled with suggestions for those who 
wish to make a success of life. All seem ready 



CLASS OF 88. 127 

to tell young people what they should do to win 
renown. But most of their advice is misleading. 
Young people are told to aim high, and take for 
their motto: "There is room at the top." No 
one is bound to earth and he who wishes to suc- 
ceed in life should be ambitious and have aspira- 
tions for something nobler than he has ever 
known. 

But there is such a thing as aiming too high. 
Much time and energy is wasted in striving after 
the unattainable. Too many young people have 
become discontented and gone into professions 
for which they are not prepared. The result is 
that all the so-called honorable professions have 
become crowded by mediocre young men who 
have aimed high and endeavored to reach the 
top. It is far nobler to succeed in an humble vo- 
cation than to fail in an honored profession. Fail- 
ure is ignoble — yea, it is criminal when it is the 
result of a wrong idea of life. 

Aim not so high, but aim steady. Have some 
well-defined object in life and you will always find 
room wherever you can do good work. You may 
meet with difficulties and encounter opposition, 
but a devoted adherence to some special work for 
which you have been prepared, will always bring 
with it strength and success. Life is a constant 
warfare in which neither truce nor quarter is 
given. Each man's worst enemy is himself. The 
great battle of life is fought alone and unseen. 
The world knows not of the struggle that is 



128 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

waged in every human breast. It gives no aid 
to the right and lends no strength to the truth. 
By a law of nature, each must meet the enemy 
alone. He who conquers is a victor indeed. He 
who overcomes his own corrupt nature and evil 
passions, need fear no difficulties in life, for God 
and truth are upon his side. By the light of his- 
tory we see the hero of the tented field, the victor 
of a hundred battles, the proud conqueror of a 
hundred kingdoms, fall and acknowledge defeat 
when brought face to face with his own depraved 
appetite and evil passions. The hero of the 
world, he could not conquer himself. 

Let your first battle in life be the conquest of 
self. Have your heart right, and you need have 
no fears of the result. In this age of progress 
fortunes are made and lost in a day. There are 
many business transactions that are not strictly 
honest, and even sin is winked at in high places. 
But no financial success or worldly fame can 
atone for the loss of character. Under no cir- 
cumstances can you ever afford to do anything 
that is low and mean. Vice is corruption, virtue 
is strength. God and time are always upon the 
side of truth. Every man's character must be 
tested in the crucible of time. Only that which 
is true and noble can stand the test. Each day 
should some victory be won ; each day you should 
gain strength by correcting the mistakes of the 
past. 

Aim not so much at what will bring honor, but 



CLASS OF '89. 129 

engage in that work where you can do most for 
humanity. Every deed performed for the welfare 
of others is a noble deed. Look not for a life of 
ease. They are greatest who do most for others. 
Those who would lead men first serve them. 

Your success in life depends chiefly upon your 
own efforts. No diploma, no certificate of merit, 
no golden medal of distinction, can take the place 
of genuine old-fashioned work. 

As you go out in life our best wishes go with 
you. We want to hear of your success. Rely 
not upon the assistance of others, but depend 
upon your own efforts. In the darkest hour ad- 
here to the principles of truth, and your life will 
be noble, your death triumphant. 

CLASS OF '89. 

Nothing need be said at this time. The year's 
work is now ended. The personal contact of 
teachers and students in the class room and in 
the social relations of life has left an influence 
that will cling to you forever. That influence 
cannot be changed. Life has come in contact 
with life, and new hopes and new ambitions now 
rise before us. 

As you go out from these walls to engage in 
the active duties of life we trust that you take 
with you nobler aims and higher ideals of life. 
The value of a collegiate or normal education 
depends not alone upon the knowledge acquired. 
Not the man that has mastered the most books 



I30 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

is always the most successful. It is not knowl- 
edge, but the ability to acquire knowledge that 
gives power and strength to the individual. Edu- 
cation is not for show, but for usefulness. In 
normal education culture and utility go hand in 
hand. It should not be your ambition to astonish 
people by your accomplishments, but to help 
them. That knowledge that does not make you 
more useful in your day and generation is of no 
importance. 

The knowledge acquired in school cannot be 
compared with the importance of true mental 
culture, correct habits of thought and a right 
conception of your place and responsibility in 
the world. The spirit of investigation and inde- 
pendent thought that you have acquired and de- 
veloped in your course of study will ever be to 
you an element of strength. In whatever voca- 
tion you may engage still adhere to normal prin- 
ciples and always read, think and investigate for 
yourself. He is a nonentity who delegates his 
thinking to others. 

What you are and what you can do will deter- 
mine your success in life. By your work you 
must be willing to be judged, and justice demands 
no other standard of merit. The same spirit of 
earnest devoted labor that you have displayed in 
the school room will remove many of the obsta- 
cles from your pathway in life. This is a practical 
age. No one stops to help him who has not the 
courage to do and dare. Your friends and neigh- 



CLASS OF '89. 131 

bors have a right to expect you to be more useful 
members of society. The time you have spent 
at the Normal should make you a power for good 
in your community. Shirk not the duties and 
responsibilities of life. Do not think that your 
days of study are over. There can be no rest in 
nature. However successful you may be in your 
work, rest not. There are still higher and 
grander fields of attainment. 

But neither knowledge nor the ability to ac- 
quire knowledge is the most important part of an 
education. Character is the one thing that sur- 
vives amid the wreck of empires and the crash 
of words. Be what you would seem. Stand by 
what you believe to be right. There is always a 
demand for young people of noble character. 
Even honesty has a commercial value. Corpora- 
tions are seeking men in whom they can confide 
important interests. The question asked is not 
what does the applicant know, but is he reliable ? 
No present gain or prospect of future advance- 
ment should induce any one to do what is even 
questionable. 

Those who adhere to what they believe to be 
right when it is unpopular for them to do so al- 
ways find a place in the world. Too many per- 
sons are willing to make a compromise with sin. 
A compromise with evil means surrender. He 
who yields and turns traitor to his conscience and 
the promptings of his better nature is lost. 
Truth and falsehood are eternal opposites. They 



132 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

never walk side by side. They are the two great 
antagonistic forces in the moral world. There is 
no neutral ground and between these forces there 
can be no truce. 

What is morally wrong can never be socially 
right. The maxim that the end justifies the 
means is false in theory and ruinous in practice. 
Whatever may be the interests at stake nothing 
is gained by a departure from the strict rules of 
rectitude. Honesty of purpose, nobility of char- 
acter, purity of thought and perseverance in ac- 
tion is a shield and a helmet to every young per- 
son who encounters the adverse influences of life. 

Our daily papers are filled with the record of 
vice and crime in all its disgusting details. The 
story is told in a flippant manner as if it were a 
mere misdemeanor or thoughtless act and not a 
violation of both moral and natural law. Sin is 
not always condemned, but is frequently winked 
at and sometimes even condoned. Public opin- 
ion is not always a safe rule of action. Listen not 
to the delusive enticements of sin, but amid all 
temptations and evil environments and corrupt 
influences keep your record clear. When vice 
seems to triumph over virtue and iniquity ap- 
parently usurps the throne of righteousness fear 
not, fail not. The everlasting stars of Truth, 
Purity and Right still hold their places in the 
center of the moral heavens. By them steer your 
course and with faith in an allwise Father and 
confidence in your own strength strive on, strive 



CLASS OF 90. 133 

ever, and when you fall friends and neighbors 
will rise up and call you blessed. 

CLASS OF '90. 

It is not always wise to give advice. However, 
at this time a few words of counsel may not be 
out of place for one who is deeply interested in 
your welfare. Standing here to-night it is well to 
scrutinize carefully the events of the past. To 
know the past is to be prepared for the future. 

What you accomplish in life depends upon 
what you have already done, what object you 
have in view, and the manner in which you en- 
gage in that work. Countless thousands fail be- 
cause they know not their own powers and have 
no well defined object in life. They drift with the 
tide, because they have not the courage to stem 
the current. It requires a brave man to surmount 
obstacles. He must have faith in the cause he ad- 
vocates and confidence in himself. 

When once you have entered upon a course of 
action which you believe to be just and right 
press on. Keep your eyes upon the eternal stars 
and go forward. Never, never, never falter. To 
stop is cowardice; to turn back is treason. Turn 
not aside for the allurements of pleasure; heed 
not the enticements of vice ; enter into no entang- 
ling alliances with sin; "keep your record clean." 
The straight path of rectitude and right is al- 
ways the safest. The Golden Apples of Hes- 
perides grow not upon the Plains of Sodom. 



134 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

The jewels of character — truth, purity and right 
— are not reflected in the murky pools of sin and 
vice. To gain the prize of life it is not necessary 
to engage in questionable transactions. As you 
now go out from these halls to engage in the 
various vocations of life our best wishes go with 
you. We believe that you will not fail. In what- 
ever work you may engage aim not so much sim- 
ply to excel, but always do your best. Go forward 
then with faith in God and faith in the final tri- 
umph of the right, and never fear to do and dare 
for the cause of truth and justice. 

CLASS OF '91. 

Each age has its own pressing duties and pecu- 
liar dangers. The hopes and ambitions of man 
take their color from the time in which he lives. 
He who dreams only of the grandeur of the past 
can have no part in the glory of the future. The 
duties of the present have no time for idle boast- 
ing. 

This is an age of mighty achievements. Science 
pierces eternal depths of space; counts, weighs 
and measures unseen stars. Even the frozen re- 
gions of the North yield their secrets and science 
claims dominion over all. In no other age has 
man so subdued nature and shown his mastery of 
the world. 

The inventive genius of man has made easy 
hitherto impossibilities. In every profession and 
vocation of life is felt the fierce struggle for su- 



CLASS OF '91. I35 

premacy. The slow going methods of the past 
will not answer the demands of the age of electric 
lights and aerial navigation. All men are in a 
hurry to reach the goal and wear the laurel 
wreath of success. And in this eagerness for for- 
tune and for fame is the peculiar danger of our 
own time. In their haste to reach the end men 
too often disregard the means. 

The fiercer the contest the greater the need of 
strong, brainy men and women. He who stands 
when many fall not only proves his own strength 
but is a refuge to which the w r eaker ones may 
cling. In every age honesty of purpose and con- 
viction commands a premium. The man whose 
word is not as good as his bond needs to be 
watched. He who is honest simply from policy 
is dishonest from policy. It is worth any man's 
best endeavor to enter the arena of life and win 
success. No other age has offered so many in- 
ducements to the man of exalted ambition and 
undaunted courage. 

The grandeur of Greece and the glory of Rome 
grow pale and dim in comparison with the bright 
heritage of the present. Wander not then among 
the graveyards of the past, but journey up the 
sunlit mountains of the future. Be willing to 
give every man a fair show. Neither underrate 
nor misrepresent your competitor. Meet fairly 
every contestant for honor, and do not for the 
sake of any seeming advantage stoop to what is 
low and mean. Have faith in your own integrity, 



I36 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

in the justness of your cause, and in the final 
triumph of right. In every work let merit be 
your watchword and win by fair means or win not 
at all. 

Stand by the right. Make no compromise with 
evil and yield to no wrong. It is such men who 
move forward the hands on the great clock of 
progress and leave everywhere evidence of 
thought and action. To be weak is cowardly, 
to be brave is to be strong. 

In short, enter upon the duties of life as be- 
comes brave men and women. Consider well 
every action. Have an object in all you do. Rec- 
ognize your own weakness and have an abiding 
faith in your own ability. In the day of your 
most brilliant achievements arid in the night of 
your darkest defeat, bow in humble submission 
to the wisdom that framed the world, and lean 
for strength upon the Almighty Arm that upholds 
the universe. 

CLASS OF '92. 

That times change and men change with them 
is nowhere more true than in the teacher's pro- 
fession. The old idea that the pupil was for the 
school and not the school for the pupil is no 
longer advocated by any one. Nor is that mate- 
rialistic education that attempted to make of the 
child a mere automaton to be acted upon by the 
teacher any longer popular. The child is now 
recognized as the important factor in both the 



CLASS OF '92. 137 

work of education and of civilization. His feel- 
ings and his emotions are not to be disregarded. 

That system of education that does not recog- 
nize as a fundamental principle that there is a 
God at the center of the Universe and a soul as 
the center of man is false in theory and ruinous in 
practice. That cold, calculating theory that sees 
in man nothing more than a very subtle organiza- 
tion of matter, satisfies not the inquiring mind. 

Man is free. He is a complex being controlled 
and directed by his emotions as well as by his 
judgment. What a man thinks and believes 
determines his character and his destiny. Let 
him who would be noble keep his heart pure and 
his mind clean. 

A man's worth in the world depends not upon 
the extent of his knowledge, nor upon culture 
and experience. Character has a commercial 
rating. There is always something about a suc- 
cessful man that can neither be weighed nor an- 
alyzed. It is his individuality, his magnetism, 
his soul. Whatever may be the philosophy, it is 
a recognized fact that a man is valuable in any 
profession or vocation only to the extent that he 
can put himself in his work. 

Every successful achievement, every enduring 
edifice, every ennobling organization is the result 
of some one who thought and felt and acted. We 
stand entranced before the canvas and the sculp- 
tured marble because we see there portrayed what 
to the artist was most real and most true. We are 



I38 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

thrilled by the musician's masterpiece because 
we feel in the grand symphonies the pulsations of 
his throbbing heart. 

With a cultured mind and skillful hand, there 
should always go a heart that can be touched by 
the hopes and disappointments of others. It is 
as important to feel right as it is to think right. 

As you go out in life "To thine own self be 
true." Copy after the Great Master and be your- 
self. Your individuality must be to you more 
than all else. When you are true to what you feel 
and believe, it matters not if you are not always 
popular. No question is ever finally settled until 
it is settled right. The cause that is now pro- 
nounced weak and helpless may in the end be 
stronger and more terrible "than an army with 
banners." 

Fate is against no man who is not against him- 
self. Even the stars in their courses fight for 
him who contends for truth and not for fame. 
When life and its work is ended, then shall we 
realize that nothing is of any worth, that nothing 
is enduring, that is not founded upon the eternal 
principles of truth, virtue and right. 

CLASS OF '93. 

Commencement day is always of peculiar in- 
terest. It is a time when we look both to the past 
and to the future — back to the failures and tri- 
umphs of the school room ; forward to the greater 
difficulties and nobler achievements of life. This 



CLASS OF 93. I39 

is commencement day — not the end, but the be- 
ginning. An education that is ended is neither 
useful nor ornamental. The value of an educa- 
tion depends upon what it is. A mere knowl- 
edge of science, of mathematics and of language, 
however complete, is not a practical education. 
This is a utilitarian age. The demand is for men 
who not only know but who also feel. Character 
is more important than knowledge. In all ages 
of the world manhood has been at a premium. 

We stand in awe beside the rugged mountain 
that rears its head to the very clouds; with ad- 
miration man beholds the waves of the sea as they 
beat with almost resistless fury against the rocky 
coast; in all ages from vale and hilltop have shep- 
herd boys and born scientists gazed with rap- 
ture upon the heavens as they endeavored to 
number the countless stars, and yet far greater 
than any or all of these is man, the crowning 
work of creation. Man standing alone, stronger 
than the mountains, purer than the sea and 
brighter than the stars. And yet the glory of 
man is not in his physical strength, nor in the 
swiftness of his flight, in the gracefulness of his 
motions, nor in the keen perception of his senses, 
for in all these is he surpassed by the lovers of 
creation. Nor is it in the power of his intellect 
though he may weigh words unseen and render 
easy hitherto impossibilities. But it is in his kin- 
ship with God. It is that subtle something that 



140 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

can neither be analyzed nor defined that makes 
man the ruler and master of the world. 

To be a man with nobleness of character and 
purity of purpose is to be the grandest thing be- 
neath the stars. It may not always be popular to 
be on the right side. In fact it sometimes seems 
as if strict integrity was not desirable, but these 
apparent contradictions pass away as the shadow 
of a dream, and it is still the man behind the word 
that gives it power and life. 

The great epic poem of humanity illustrating 
the brotherhood of man and the triumph of right 
over wrong, of reason over prejudice has not yet 
been written. The world awaits her master. The 
day of martyrdom is not yet past. The history 
of the world's prayers might be written in the 
blood of those who lived and died true to a prin- 
ciple and a cause they believed to be right and 
just. He who would save his life must be willing 
to be forgotten if only his work may live. 

You now go out from school to prove to the 
world what you can do. Difficulties await you 
at every step of the journey. Do not waste your 
strength over the petty annoyances of life. Con- 
tend not for victory when no principle of right 
is at issue. Save your energy for great emer- 
gencies. Life now is indeed sweet; fair is the 
sky of the future ; no clouds are upon the horizon, 
and yet how soon may misfortune and disaster 
crowd thick and fast upon you. How soon may 
you find opposition where you now expect assist- 



CLASS OF 94. 141 

ance, and the whole issue — success or failure — 
devolve upon you. In that hour may your 
strength fail not. Though you bend yet may you 
not break. 

Go forth then in the strength of your divine 
kinship and with the courage of true manhood. 
Turn not your back upon truth. Make your life 
noble and then your death will indeed be vic- 
torious. 

CLASS OF '94. 

Commencement days- are the golden milestones 
in the history of a school. As the years come 
and go all the fond recollections of school life 
cluster around these occasions. They not only 
mark the progress that has been made, but they 
serve as an inspiration to the nobler achieve- 
ments and the greater triumphs of the future. 
Amid garlands of flowers and the best wishes 
of friends old and new the members of another 
graduating class go out to test their strength in 
the battle of life. We try not to read the future, 
and we can only say, "God bless you, God speed 
you." 

It has been well said that school life is only a 
preparation for life's school. In no age of the 
world's history has this been more true than at 
the present time. Many remedies for existing 
evils have been suggested, but the perpetuity of 
the government and the safety of society can be 
secured by no other means than by a sanctified, 



142 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

Christian education. Knowledge is not always 
power, nor is science and philosophy always a 
mark of wisdom. Intellectual development is an 
uplifting and controlling power only when it has 
received the imprint and seal of Him who created 
man in his own image. Man is weak until he can 
think God's thoughts and is willing to be simply 
the means for the accomplishment of divine ends. 
Paul sitting at the feet of Gamaliel that he 
might become familiar with the beauties of the 
Jewish religion, understand the contradictions of 
the traditions of the elders and comprehend all 
the subtleties of the Greek and Roman Philoso- 
phy, is indeed the model student. Paul going 
down to Damascus, though armed with ecclesi- 
astical authority, to bring bound to Jerusalem 
all who might be found proclaiming the teachings 
of the new religion attracted but little attention 
and was but little feared. But Paul standing amid 
the sacred temples on Mars Hill and declaring to 
the representatives of all nations the Unknown 
God whom they ignorantly worship is a scene of 
moral grandeur and intellectual power without 
a parallel in the world's history. With a philoso- 
phy far more profound and logical than the 
learned Socrates taught to his pupils amid the 
groves of Athens, and with an eloquence far more 
impressive and persuasive than the Philipics the 
mighty Demosthenes hurled against the conquer- 
ing King of Macedon he answered all questions, 
met all objections, overthrew all sophistry, and 



CLASS OF '95. 143 

boldly proclaimed the Martyr of Calvary as the 
light of the world A tyrant claimed his head; 
and his lips, though touched with the burning 
coals of eloquence, have long since been silent, 
but the heart of the great Apostle to the Gentiles 
still beats sacred music in a thousand Christian 
pulpits. 

Paul's power was in a comprehensive intellec- 
tual education sanctified by the zeal and enthu- 
siasm of a holy purpose. Analyze the question 
as you will and nothing can take the place of en- 
thusiasm. He who would succeed must believe 
that he is right and be willing to show, his faith, 
not only by his works, but, if necessary, by his 
death. Without zeal, without faith all knowledge 
is lifeless. 

Go forth, then, young friends, to battle and to 
conquest. Inscribe on your banners truth, purity 
and right. Ask not rest, but strength to labor on. 
Great indeed may be your achievements in the 
field of letters and in the realm of science, but 
however illustrious your victories never be too 
wise, nor yet too proud to sit at the feet of Him 
in whose hands are the issues of life and death, 
and in whose touch is the healing of the nations. 

CLASS OF '95. 

Truth is many-sided. The finite mind cannot 
comprehend truth in all its completeness. It is 
indeed the glory and majesty of the Infinite One. 
For this reason, all minds are one-sided; all per- 



144 X-TALKS AND .OTHER ADDRESSES. 

sons more or less eccentric. All do not perceive 
the same truth, nor are they equally impressed 
with its power. It is in this that the real power of 
a man lies. When we are like others, we are 
weak. It is only in things in which we are pecu- 
liar that we are strong. A man's power and in- 
fluence in the world is in his individuality. Much 
has been said of the beauty and grandeur of the 
all round man. It sounds nice, but such men are 
seldom practical. It is the one-sided angular 
man who can push his way through the crowd, 
while the well rounded man succeeds best in sim- 
ply holding his own. It is the wild enthusiast, 
the fanatic, if you will, who has faith in himself 
and the cause he represents, who reforms the 
world and starts revolutions. 

He who would lead must be willing to die for 
the truth that he most clearly comprehends. 
Faith is a controlling power in the physical as 
well as in the spiritual world. 

Be yourself. Have faith in yourself, but think 
not that you comprehend all the truth, and that 
he who sees differently must be either an igno- 
ramus or a fool. When you are in the right, you 
can afford to be charitable. 

All manner of intellectual sins may be for- 
given, save that of littleness. For that, there is 
no pardon. The man who sees no good outside 
of his own party, no virtue outside of his own 
church, no excellence outside of his own com- 
munity and nothing of merit in what he has no 



CLASS OF '96. 145 

interest in is to be pitied, because for him there 
is no hope. He secures neither intellectual su- 
premacy nor physical happiness. He is himself 
the center of all his hopes and his ambitions, and 
the poor deluded man never realizes the sordid- 
ness and utter littleness of his life. 

Lay broad and deep the foundations of a noble 
character. Lay strong and secure the rudiments 
of intellectual culture. Follow with your face to 
the light, the faint glimmerings of truth. Let 
"Upward still and onward" be your motto, regard- 
less alike of the sneers of the indifferent and re- 
proach of friends. With truth for a guide and as 
a shield, fear nothing save to do evil, and when 
at last life and its turmoils are ended, He who 
sees the sparrow fall will place upon your brow 
the victor's crown. 

CLASS OF '96. 
BY MRS. G. W. HOENSHEL. 
The circumstances which have placed me be- 
fore you to-night are so different from the past, 
that I have felt at liberty to make some digression 
in the regular order of addresses. As these com- 
mencement exercises close the first chapter in 
the history of this institution, I shall call your 
attention to the last thirteen years of the Shen- 
andoah Normal College: 

"Backward, turn backward, oh, time, in thy 

flight," 

And tell us of struggles and triumphs to-night 



I46 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

The Normal encountered from the present right 

down 
To the day of its birth in old Middletown. 
September 4th, in the year '83, 
Began a new era for you and for me, 
And many look back to that day who are glad, 
While some look back to that day and are sad. 
Still stands that old building where this Normal 

school 
Began its strange life with one simple rule. 
I'll tell it to you who leave us to-night, 
It's two little words, just simply "do right." 
Unfurled on our banner is co-education, 
True worth is the standard whatever the station, 
And laddie and lassie, the rich and the poor, 
Are welcomed alike at this college door. 
Outgrowing its home, the school did not stay 
In the place of its birth. Four years passed away, 
Then it moved up the Valley to Rockingham 

county, 
Receiving no aid and asking no bounty. 
But struggled right on the school to maintain, 
And trusted to merit for aid or for gain. 
Success in a measure attended us there, 
But buildings unsuited still gave us some care, 
And the hope had been cherished, not wishing to 

roam, 
To gain for the school a permanent home. 
There comes in each life — I believe it must be — 
That inborn desire for one's own "vine and fig 

tree." 
So the future looked bright, good-byes hard to 

say, 
Are often forgotten when hope leads the way. 
For new Basic City inducements now offered, 
And the Normal accepted the home that was prof- 
fered. 
Prosperity smiled, and though it seemed strange, 



CLASS OF '96. 147 

The Normal increased with the move and the 

change. 
Success never seemed half so near to our door, 
Prosperity never so dear and so sure. 
Vain hope! You promised a respite from care, 
That burdens should lift, so grievous to bear, 
How health should be gained in the home now 

secured, 
The past with its cares no longer endured. 
But you sealed from our sight, if the future you 

knew, 
The dire disaster which followed us, too. 
Now memory lingers o'er one celebration 
The day for Columbus with its bright decoration 
Of bunting and flags, how proudly they waved, 
The one now before you the only one saved! 
For there came unexpected, one night about ten, 
The wild cry of fire — how it startled us then! 
No warning came with it, just simply to go, 
Leave our home to its fate, each heart to its woe. 
Do you know what it is for one moment to stand 
Facing your life's work while like footprints in 

sand 
The billows dash in from some far away shore, 
And carry it away to be seen nevermore? 
If you do, you know a little in part 
Of the trials and sorrows of one human heart, 
Which gave what it had, its life to the call, 
"Equal education for the poor and for all/* 
Can you tell me to-night what you would each do 
Should a trial like this come to any of you? 
Not a trial of fire, but a trial of fate, 
As a child of the Normal don't sit down and wait, 
For favor or friends to carry you through, 
Rely on yourself, let your motto be, "Do." 
Though our home is in ashes while our hearts 

are not there 



I48 X-TALKS AND OTHER ADDRESSES. 

Defeat shall not crown us, we'll know not despair. 
The burden of this life's work we'll take up once 

more, 
Travel the thorny path trod oft before. 
As inborn as life was the spirit to go, whatever 

the lack 
This College must live; there is no way back, 
Then "Forward," the motto, "March," the com- 
mand, 
Fincta new home in our own native land. 
In spite of suspicion and doubts of the people, 
The college is standing in sight, with its steeple 
Pointing upward — "Never look down," 
It seems to be saying to the youth of our town. 
Shall a task thus begun end with to-day, 
Will you bid it Godspeed forever and aye? 
New hands shall carry the work to its goal, 
Though waves of adversity unceasingly roll. 
Then work with a will, and a pleasure so sweet 
We'll count it at last, when all is complete, 
To lay down the burden at Jesus' own feet. 
This history recited has not been for praise, 
But trusting some lesson might hallow your days, 
When the story you've learned of your old Alma 

Mater 
Inspires your actions and makes your life greater; 
If your trial should come in the form of disaster, 
Keep you firm and trusting in the love of the 

Master. 
To you who are standing on the threshold to- 
night, 
Where the future unfolds so joyous and bright, 
Have courage for duty. In the strength of your 

might, 
Forget not your Maker, love Truth and the 
Right, 



CLASS OF '96. 149 

This prayer shall go with you, Oh, God, make 
them strong, 

The world needs their strength, the lonely their 
song. 

Tis finished; the last of your lessons are done; 

Your life shall determine the victories won. 

Each student's work shall a monument be 

To the glory or shame of the S. N. C. 

Forget you! No, never, though to-morrow you 
go, 

Once a child of the Normal, forever you're so; 

And your life with its changes, your work in- 
complete, 

We'll watch you develop with an interest sweet. 



THE END. 



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